So it actually uses the "standard" Minotaur fairing, and not the same fairing as the Taurus.
Quote from: Robotbeat on 02/21/2014 10:50 pmThere were multiple things that had to go wrong with the Taurus fairing for it not to work. No, just one thing.
There were multiple things that had to go wrong with the Taurus fairing for it not to work.
I wonder if the renaming of Taurus to Minotaur C (assuming this is what is happening) might be avionics-based. Minotaur was equipped from the outset with an upgraded version of Orbital's older Pegasus and Taurus avionics system. This included the inclusion of Orbital's Modular Avionics Control Hardware (MACH) system and the use of high-data rate telemetry. MACH was originally developed, as I understand it, for OSP and Target Launch Vehicle. Perhaps a Taurus equipped with updated Minotaur avionics suite is now going to be called "Minotaur C". Just a guess. - Ed Kyle
Quote from: Kim Keller on 02/22/2014 01:30 amQuote from: Robotbeat on 02/21/2014 10:50 pmThere were multiple things that had to go wrong with the Taurus fairing for it not to work. No, just one thing.Well, for the first failure only one thing had to go wrong. For the second failure, another thing had to go wrong - the failure review board had to fail to find the right problem (or perhaps specify the wrong set of fixes).
After OCO and Glory, Taurus was actually out of flight computers; the original manufacture had moved on. One of those two crapped out in testing and had to be sent back for repair prior to OCO, which made a few people pretty nervous. So I guess instead of keeping the Taurus name and paying to upgrade they are just doing the upgrade to MACH and giving the vehicle a clean start.
So is it not so much renaming a rocket as a hostile takeover merger of the Taurus and Minotaur teams?Might we see similar Pegasus synergy in the future?
Quote from: Lurker Steve on 02/24/2014 09:28 pmSo it actually uses the "standard" Minotaur fairing, and not the same fairing as the Taurus.Which was in turn taken from Taurus-2210 and -3210. So it is in fact the large Taurus fairing - not the small, which caused so much trouble.
The engineering teams for Minotaur & Pegasus/Taurus will probably remain separate. The Vandenberg operations have always been integrated across the product line.
Quote from: Kim Keller on 02/25/2014 01:21 pmThe engineering teams for Minotaur & Pegasus/Taurus will probably remain separate. The Vandenberg operations have always been integrated across the product line.Antares is a third team? Pegasus II a fourth? I'm trying to understand why Taurus is being folded into Minotaur-C, but the other solids aren't.
Pegasus II is the informal name for the Stratolaunch launch vehicle.
Peter B. de Selding @pbdes 9m9 minutes agoSix @planetlabs 100-kg SkySat high-res observation sats built by @sslmda arrive Vandenberg AFB for Oct launch on @OrbitalATK Minotaur.
Quote from: baldusi on 02/23/2014 01:28 pmWasn't a material uncontrolled secondary property that failed to propagate the fissure?If that's meant to indicate that the frangible joint was not manufactured by a subcontractor to aerospace requirements, then you're right.
Wasn't a material uncontrolled secondary property that failed to propagate the fissure?
Planet will be launching 6 SkySats (SkySat 8-13) and 4 Doves (Flock 3m) on an Orbital-ATK Minotaur-C rocket from the SLC-576E launch pad at Vandenberg Air Force Base on October 17, 2017. The target orbit is a Sun Synchronous, 500 km orbit with a 13:30 (1:30pm) crossing time.
QuotePlanet will be launching 6 SkySats (SkySat 8-13) and 4 Doves (Flock 3m) on an Orbital-ATK Minotaur-C rocket from the SLC-576E launch pad at Vandenberg Air Force Base on October 17, 2017. The target orbit is a Sun Synchronous, 500 km orbit with a 13:30 (1:30pm) crossing time. https://www.planet.com/pulse/all-in-the-family-planet-to-launch-skysats-and-doves-on-minotaur-c/
QuoteOrbital ATK@OrbitalATKOrbital ATK is requesting a later launch date of its #MinotaurC rocket from @30thSpaceWing to accommodate further verification & testingSource: https://twitter.com/OrbitalATK/status/918102913666441216Unfortunately, I was unable to find anything more specific.
Orbital ATK@OrbitalATKOrbital ATK is requesting a later launch date of its #MinotaurC rocket from @30thSpaceWing to accommodate further verification & testing