Author Topic: LIVE: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26 - Jan 17, 09  (Read 214020 times)

Offline WHAP

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #20 on: 05/15/2008 03:25 am »
No
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Offline William Graham

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #21 on: 05/16/2008 07:14 pm »
Quote
daver - 15/5/2008  2:56 AM

Spacefellowship says that the launch is on May 15th @ 8:00.
Is this possible?
http://spacefellowship.com/Calendar/calendar.php?mode=view&id=5324


Their schedule is out-of-date. It was scheduled for 15 May at one point, but was delayed months ago.

Offline faustod

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #22 on: 06/10/2008 08:55 am »
According to Spaceflow Now the launch is now scheduled for September 26.

Offline Analyst

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #23 on: 09/12/2008 07:55 am »
And now late October. Less than one year after the last flight seems to much to ask. But still barely possible.

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Offline Jim

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #24 on: 09/12/2008 11:55 am »
most were payload problems

Offline faustod

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #25 on: 10/02/2008 06:12 am »
According to Spaceflight Now, the launch date is now 13 November.

Offline faustod

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #26 on: 10/04/2008 06:06 am »
To avoid the range conflict, with Endeavour launch on 14 November, the schedule for NRO L-26 is now 17 November.

Offline Analyst

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #27 on: 10/04/2008 06:40 am »
I would not be surprised - based on history - if this flight slips more. Wouldn't be the first time. Even Stuttle is more on schedule than Detla IV.

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Offline faustod

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #28 on: 10/04/2008 11:06 am »
I would not be surprised - based on history - if this flight slips more. Wouldn't be the first time. Even Stuttle is more on schedule than Detla IV.

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Yes, you are right.

Offline edkyle99

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #29 on: 10/05/2008 04:10 am »
I would not be surprised - based on history - if this flight slips more. Wouldn't be the first time. Even Stuttle is more on schedule than Detla IV.

Analyst

Makes you wonder, doesn't it, what the heck is going on with that payload?  For this long a delay, it must be nearly as complex as Shuttle.  It must be a massive program, employing tens of thousands at least. 

It must cost billions, each year.  There must be cavernous satellite factories hidden beneath mountains somewhere.  It must be the secret weapon that will find Bin Laden.  Maybe it will solve the credit crises and the energy crises and global warming all at once. 

 - Ed Kyle

Offline Damon Hill

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #30 on: 10/05/2008 06:02 am »
Ed's been watching too much Star Gate.


--Damon

Offline Analyst

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #31 on: 10/05/2008 08:33 am »
I would not be surprised - based on history - if this flight slips more. Wouldn't be the first time. Even Stuttle is more on schedule than Detla IV.

Analyst

Makes you wonder, doesn't it, what the heck is going on with that payload?  For this long a delay, it must be nearly as complex as Shuttle.  It must be a massive program, employing tens of thousands at least. 

It must cost billions, each year.  There must be cavernous satellite factories hidden beneath mountains somewhere.  It must be the secret weapon that will find Bin Laden.  Maybe it will solve the credit crises and the energy crises and global warming all at once. 

 - Ed Kyle

LOL. Keep in mind this mission has been planned for Titan IV, ca. 2003. It can't solve the energy crises and global warming because both were not recognized as problems by then. Oh wait, they are redesigning the super satellite because of these new enemies. Now I have hope again.

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Offline William Graham

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #32 on: 10/05/2008 11:54 am »

LOL. Keep in mind this mission has been planned for Titan IV

Was that ever confirmed? My understanding was that an NRO satellite was moved from Titan to Delta, and that no specific launch has been identified as the one transferred. My money's still on L-15.

Offline Analyst

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #33 on: 10/05/2008 12:11 pm »
I don't know. L-15 is planned for ~2011, giving them more time to redesign the super satellite to solve the problems Ed mentioned :) Would be an eight year delay.

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Offline Jim

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #34 on: 10/05/2008 01:00 pm »
I would not be surprised - based on history - if this flight slips more. Wouldn't be the first time. Even Stuttle is more on schedule than Detla IV.


Makes you wonder, doesn't it, what the heck is going on with that payload?  For this long a delay, it must be nearly as complex as Shuttle.  It must be a massive program, employing tens of thousands at least. 

It must cost billions, each year.  There must be cavernous satellite factories hidden beneath mountains somewhere.  It must be the secret weapon that will find Bin Laden.  Maybe it will solve the credit crises and the energy crises and global warming all at once. 

 - Ed Kyle

LOL. Keep in mind this mission has been planned for Titan IV, ca. 2003. It can't solve the energy crises and global warming because both were not recognized as problems by then. Oh wait, they are redesigning the super satellite because of these new enemies. Now I have hope again.

Analyst

No, the left over T-IV was for DSP

Offline Analyst

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #35 on: 10/05/2008 02:05 pm »
I am quite sure DSP-23 was not the only one left over from Titan.

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Offline WHAP

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #36 on: 10/05/2008 02:25 pm »
How do you guys define "left over"?  The TIV program wasn't cancelled abruptly.  So were these payloads just planned before the program ended and the assumption was that they would fly on a Titan, or were they actually manifested on a Titan IV?
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Offline Analyst

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #37 on: 10/05/2008 02:47 pm »
Well, this is iffy. Its a payload

- from a satellite program,
- which consists of several (almost) identical satellites,
- and many or all of these satellites were launched by Titan IV as long as it was available.

Examples: DSP, ELINT and SIGNIT payloads. There were 10 DSP second generation satellites, 9 of them used an IUS and 8 of these a Titan IV (one used a Shuttle) The tenth, the leftover, used the second Delta IV.

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« Last Edit: 10/05/2008 02:48 pm by Analyst »

Offline Jim

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #38 on: 10/05/2008 03:20 pm »
I am quite sure DSP-23 was not the only one left over from Titan.


I wouldn't call them "leftover"   EELV's replaced Titans IV/II, Atlas II and Delta II.  Just as there was DSCS, GPS, DMSP, etc that flew on EELV's, there are "other" payloads that will or did.  The EELV spec enveloped the largest Titan payload.  So when the EELV 's were given a go ahead in 1997, spacecraft programs could continue to design/build to the same requirements as they did before.
The same thing occurred during the transition from shuttle to T-IV.  The DSP-23 spacecraft could have flown on the Shuttle, Titan-IV or EELV (I say EELV, since it was light enough for an Atlas V too).  DSP-23 (and a few of its sisters) were probably procured after the transition from Shuttle to Titan-IV but it just a continuation of a production line vs a new design.

Also just a note for those who didn't read between the lines, EELV specs were ultimately driven by the shuttle

Offline William Graham

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Re: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-26
« Reply #39 on: 10/05/2008 03:42 pm »
I don't know...Would be an eight year delay.

Not unheard of, I believe the record is 13 years.

How do you guys define "left over"?  The TIV program wasn't cancelled abruptly.  So were these payloads just planned before the program ended and the assumption was that they would fly on a Titan, or were they actually manifested on a Titan IV?

Wasn't there a Titan IV left over at the end of the programme? IIRC, it was just a core vehicle (no upper stage), which seems to suggest a LEO payload. DSP would have needed an IUS, and a GSO ELINT (which is what L-26 is believed to be) would require a Centaur. That suggests that there could be a leftover LEO bird waiting around. L-15's out of sequence designation suggests it has been delayed somewhat.

Makes you wonder, doesn't it, what the heck is going on with that payload?  For this long a delay, it must be nearly as complex as Shuttle.  It must be a massive program, employing tens of thousands at least. 

The string of delays causes me to lean more towards this being the first new-generation GSO ELINT satellite (Intruder), as opposed to the last current-generation satellite (Advanced Orion).

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