GW_Simulations - 16/4/2008 6:45 PM C/NOFS is finally in orbit, 5 years behind schedule, but better late than never.
Could you summarize the history behind C/NOFS? I'm curious now you mention the 5-year delay.
eeergo - 16/4/2008 5:57 PMQuoteGW_Simulations - 16/4/2008 6:45 PM C/NOFS is finally in orbit, 5 years behind schedule, but better late than never.Could you summarize the history behind C/NOFS? I'm curious now you mention the 5-year delay.
GW_Simulations - 16/4/2008 7:37 PM Quoteeeergo - 16/4/2008 5:57 PM QuoteGW_Simulations - 16/4/2008 6:45 PM C/NOFS is finally in orbit, 5 years behind schedule, but better late than never.Could you summarize the history behind C/NOFS? I'm curious now you mention the 5-year delay. I don't know the details, I just know that the contract was signed for a 2003 launch.
eeergo - 16/4/2008 5:57 PM QuoteGW_Simulations - 16/4/2008 6:45 PM C/NOFS is finally in orbit, 5 years behind schedule, but better late than never.Could you summarize the history behind C/NOFS? I'm curious now you mention the 5-year delay.
Now we know!
http://www.spaceflightnow.com/pegasus/cnofs/
It was because of solar panel redesign issues and the technology required to make it very radiofrequency silent, given its instruments are very sensitive to those.
kevin-rf - 18/4/2008 7:30 AMAn interesting trivia bit on the orbital site about the launch, with out going to wikki/google/astonautix, who can name the six ranges Pegasus has launched from .... (No Google)
jancarlobascu - 17/4/2008 5:27 PMLaunch Photos?
Jirka Dlouhy - 18/4/2008 2:47 PMI think the launch is so secret because of the instruments are very unique and informations about navigation signals are very important.In passive form: to be poised to different kinds of anomalies. It means to be ready to elimination of their effects.In active form: to be able to use this anomalies by actions against possible enemy. In the better case to be able to create this anomalies in war situation.
Jim - 18/4/2008 9:18 PMEasy answer to no launch photos. Didn't want to spend the money.
edkyle99 - 19/4/2008 11:35 AMKwajalein surely had optical tracking. - Ed Kyle
Jim - 18/4/2008 9:18 PM Easy answer to no launch photos. Didn't want to spend the money.
You are absolutely right; this was a commercial sale to (then Spectrum Astro) GD who had to pay a significant sum for the delay - the longest in Pegasus history, I'm afraid (no criticism of GD intended - we build satellites, too, and know that sometimes stuff happens). Not very incentivized to spend even a dime on pictures!
edkyle99 - 19/4/2008 11:35 AM No chase plane, maybe (has Pegasus ever launched without a chase?)
Many, many times... (e.g. when launching the ORBCOMM satellites... again, for $$$ reasons...)
but someone photographed this thing on the tarmac, taking off, etc. Kwajalein surely had optical tracking. - Ed Kyle
Yes, we have photos; a landing one with smoke coming out of the tires and the rocket underneath is especially spectacular, but we can't distribute them without the customer's permission. maybe in a few weeks in the Orbital website?
By the way, the rocket had painted, in the middle of stage 1, right under the wing fairing, the following:
"In loving memory of G. David Low"
I was wrong about the wording of the David Low inscription on Pegasus. Here's a bunch of photos from the C/NOFS launch. There are two L-1011 landings: first at Kona (with the overcast skies), on the Big Island, the second (with a puff of smoke) at Kwaj. Other than barging in a tube trailer worth of Nitrogen from Hawaii about a month before, and some early comm checks, the bulk of the operation started about two weeks before the launch. Aircraft and most of the team arrived at L-8 days. All the spacecraft support equipment was carried on three containers in the belly of the L-1011. The ground air conditioning unit came via a USAF cargo plane. Two days after the launch, everything but the a/c (which will stay there until the IBEX launch September 13) was gone.
Compare these pictures with the pictures of Elon's operations at Omlek.
antonioe - 14/5/2008 3:34 PMI was wrong about the wording of the David Low inscription on Pegasus. Here's a bunch of photos from the C/NOFS launch. There are two L-1011 landings: first at Kona (with the overcast skies), on the Big Island, the second (with a puff of smoke) at Kwaj. Other than barging in a tube trailer worth of Nitrogen from Hawaii about a month before, and some early comm checks, the bulk of the operation started about two weeks before the launch. Aircraft and most of the team arrived at L-8 days. All the spacecraft support equipment was carried on three containers in the belly of the L-1011. The ground air conditioning unit came via a USAF cargo plane. Two days after the launch, everything but the a/c (which will stay there until the IBEX launch September 13) was gone.Compare these pictures with the pictures of Elon's operations at Omlek.
Hmmmm.... maybe the pictures are too big... is there a size limit?
Well, I reduced the David Low inscription picture to 120KB and it still gave me the "page does not exists" error after I push the "Submit" button after browsing to the file...
Any ideas, anyone?
antonioe - 15/5/2008 7:32 PM Hmmmm.... maybe the pictures are too big... is there a size limit?Well, I reduced the David Low inscription picture to 120KB and it still gave me the "page does not exists" error after I push the "Submit" button after browsing to the file...Any ideas, anyone?
I think the default maximum size is 100 KB, but I'm sure Chris can raise that limit locally as an exception... however, I think downsizing it just a bit more may do the trick for now.
On the other hand, I've just realised when I exeed the 100 KB limit I don't get that error message, just a notice on the attachment page saying the image must be smaller... :O