International Launch Services (ILS) have launched the SIRIUS FM-5 communication satellite on its way to a geostationary transfer orbit via their Proton-M launch vehicle, following lift off from Launch Pad 39 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. Launch occurred on time at 20:10 UTC, starting a launch phase that lasted a total of nine hours.
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Engineers have successfully removed the work light knob – embedded between the pressure pane on Atlantis’ pilot window and the dashboard panel – late on Monday night, after pressurizing the orbiter to aid its liberation. Meanwhile, a cart full of payload bay equipment has fallen off a truck, leading to evaluations on the state of [...]
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NASA mission planners have officially baselined the final two scheduled missions of the Space Shuttle Program, STS-133 and STS-134 – of which STS-134 is expected to fly first, in July 2010, based on an expected Change Request (CR) to move the flight that will deliver the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) to the International Space Station [...]
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The launch of an United Launch Alliance Delta IV rocket, carrying the GOES-O weather satellite for the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, has launched on Saturday, following Friday’s scrub due to unacceptable weather. Launch from LC-37B at Cape Canaveral was confirmed at 6:51pm local time.
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Preparations for next Wednesday’s tanking test are proceeding well, with the flight seal now replaced ahead of weekend work to reinstall the Quick Disconnect (QD) on the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate (GUCP). A successful tanking test is expected, due to “high confidence” a misalignment was responsible for at least STS-127’s scrub.
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Meetings have been taking place on Wednesday into evaluating damage to the pressure pane on Atlantis’ number 5 window, after a work light knob was observed to be embedded between the pane and the dashboard panel. The damage can only be fully assessed once the knob is removed, with the threat of a six month [...]
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Managers have set next Wednesday morning for a full-up tanking test of External Tank ET-131 to test a potential solution to the leaking Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate (GUCP). The leading candidate for the cause of the leaks is believed to be related to the External Tank Carrier Assembly (ETCA) mounts, a problem engineers had documented [...]
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Shuttle Discovery has been tasked with a special DTO (Detailed Test Objective) – on behalf of the Orion Project Office – to be carried out during STS-128’s re-entry. A “Catalytic Coating” has been applied to two of Discovery’s Thermal Protection System (TPS) tiles, providing Orion – and shuttle – engineers with refined aeroheating data.
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Sea Launch have successfully launched their Zenit-3SLB launch vehicle, carrying the MEASAT-3a telecommunication satellite. The Land Launch branch of the multi-national company lofted the Orbital Sciences built satellite into a geosynchronous transfer orbit from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
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Engineers have found the root cause of the Aerosurface Servoamplifer (ASA) channel 1 failure on Atlantis, after an expansive failure analysis effort found a short in the wiring. Atlantis is being processed for STS-129, following the highly successful STS-125 mission to Hubble. As part of her turnaround, the Space Shuttle Main Engines (SSMEs) that helped [...]
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Endeavour will launch only when engineers are happy they have a full understanding of the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate (GUCP) leak, even if that means slipping STS-127 past the current July 11 NET (No Earlier Than) launch target. A troubleshooting plan is currently being drawn up – which is understood to include a tanking test [...]
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An Atlas V rocket carrying NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and sister payload Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) has launched from complex 41 at Cape Canaveral on Thursday evening. Both its payload passengers were successfully sent on their journey to the moon.
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STS-127 has been scrubbed for the second time due to another leak at the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate (GUCP). The leak, first registered as within an acceptable range, before rising to breach the four percent (40,000PPM) limits, appears to point to a different issue with the hydrogen vent system. Endeavour will now have to wait until NET (No Earlier Than) [...]
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Endeavour has won the right to make a launch attempt on June 17 (Wednesday), following NASA discussions relating to the schedule priorities of the Eastern Range. The decision was made easier thanks to good progress on replacing hardware on External Tank ET-131’s Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate (GUCP), as engineers work around the clock to “safely [...]
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In a similar event to STS-119’s scrub, Endeavour’s launch has been delayed due to a significant leak registered in the region of the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate (GUCP). Engineers will dismantle the troublesome hardware at the pad, with the aim to attempt a single launch opportunity on June 17.
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The ascent threat of ice liberation, as observed on STS-126 and potentially STS-125, will be closely monitored during Endeavour’s launch - which has been delayed by a scrub - following an expansive overview by NASA’s Space Shuttle Systems Engineering and Integration Office (SE&I) to the Flight Readiness Reviews (FRRs).
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STS-127 is on track for a Saturday launch, with no issues of note being worked on the vehicle. The Mission Management Team (MMT) will meet – as per usual – on Thursday morning, in order to check on the progress of the Launch Countdown which began at 9am local time on Wednesday.
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With Endeavour’s June 13 launch to the ISS now counting down, engineers are continuing to work towards the safe flight of the fleet’s youngest orbiter and her crew. To aide in this effort, the Orbiter Project Office (OPO) examined the flight performance of STS-126 (Endeavour) and STS-125 (Atlantis) – the previous vehicle flight and previous program [...]
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The STS-127 crew – led by Commander Mark Polansky – have arrived at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC), while engineers out at Pad 39A are continuing to work towards the opening launch attempt of Endeavour on June 13 – with a review at Thursday’s L-2 (days) meeting scheduled to take a closer look at the [...]
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The Ares I-X test vehicle is scheduled to begin stacking in the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at the end of the month, despite continued slips to the launch date – the latest of which places Ares I-X as lifting off from Pad 39B NET (No Earlier Than) September 18.
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