Author Topic: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: NET 2024  (Read 15196 times)

Offline AU1.52

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Discussion Thread for the launch of Astrobotic Griffin lander carrying the VIPER rover.

NSF Threads for VIPER: Discussion

NET 2024 on Falcon Heavy.



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WASHINGTON — Astrobotic has signed a contract with SpaceX for the launch of its Griffin lunar lander, carrying a NASA lunar rover, on a Falcon Heavy in 2023.
Astrobotic announced April 13 that it selected SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy for its Griffin Mission 1 lunar lander mission, which will deliver the Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) spacecraft to the south pole of the moon in late 2023. Astrobotic won a NASA competition through the Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program last year to transport VIPER on its Griffin lunar lander.

Source: https://spacenews.com/astrobotic-selects-falcon-heavy-to-launch-nasas-viper-lunar-rover/
« Last Edit: 03/05/2024 09:34 pm by gongora »

Offline FutureSpaceTourist

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https://twitter.com/astrobotic/status/1381955810213912577

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We're going to the Moon again - this time with @SpaceX !  Falcon Heavy will carry our Griffin lunar lander to the Moon in late 2023 along with NASA’s water-hunting Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER). 🌙

Offline FutureSpaceTourist

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #2 on: 04/13/2021 03:03 pm »
Meaning of Elon’s tweet at the weekend is now clear

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1380781539647053826

Quote
… going to moon very soon

Offline yg1968

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #3 on: 04/13/2021 04:38 pm »
Meaning of Elon’s tweet at the weekend is now clear

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1380781539647053826

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… going to moon very soon

I doubt that is what he meant. SpaceX isn't going to the Moon, Astrobiotic is. Besides, a number of other CLPS missions are going to the Moon with a SpaceX launch vehicle.

Offline Jansen

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #4 on: 04/13/2021 04:38 pm »
There are at least two other lunar missions scheduled for Falcon 9 in 2021 and 2022.

Offline yg1968

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #5 on: 04/13/2021 04:41 pm »
As a side note, I am guessing this FH will have a regular fairing since it has to fit within Astrobotic's $199.5M budget for the mission.

Offline Citabria

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #6 on: 04/13/2021 04:47 pm »
Meaning of Elon’s tweet at the weekend is now clear

Quote
… going to moon very soon

I doubt that is what he meant. SpaceX isn't going to the Moon, Astrobiotic is. Besides, a number of other CLPS missions are going to the Moon with a SpaceX launch vehicle.

Will the FH 2nd stage impact the moon?

Offline baldusi

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #7 on: 04/13/2021 08:09 pm »
As a side note, I am guessing this FH will have a regular fairing since it has to fit within Astrobotic's $199.5M budget for the mission.
It most probably will have a short one because I seriously doubt they are volume constrained in a high energy, non-aerobreaking mission. But the price difference shouldn’t be too high. Even if the long fairing requires VI, the VIF will already be paid for by DoD and NASA.

Offline wannamoonbase

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #8 on: 04/13/2021 08:24 pm »
As a side note, I am guessing this FH will have a regular fairing since it has to fit within Astrobotic's $199.5M budget for the mission.
It most probably will have a short one because I seriously doubt they are volume constrained in a high energy, non-aerobreaking mission. But the price difference shouldn’t be too high. Even if the long fairing requires VI, the VIF will already be paid for by DoD and NASA.

Maybe the contract required reusing the boosters and a payload fairing.  Only expending an upper stage would make for a cheap lunar mission.
Wildly optimistic prediction, Superheavy recovery on IFT-4 or IFT-5

Offline yg1968

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #9 on: 04/13/2021 09:02 pm »
As a side note, I am guessing this FH will have a regular fairing since it has to fit within Astrobotic's $199.5M budget for the mission.
It most probably will have a short one because I seriously doubt they are volume constrained in a high energy, non-aerobreaking mission. But the price difference shouldn’t be too high. Even if the long fairing requires VI, the VIF will already be paid for by DoD and NASA.

Maybe the contract required reusing the boosters and a payload fairing.  Only expending an upper stage would make for a cheap lunar mission.

I don't think that SpaceX offers a new booster, new fairing option. The customer gets whatever SpaceX's has available. Contracts can be modified obviously but SpaceX would make the customer pay a premium for such modifications. 
« Last Edit: 04/13/2021 09:03 pm by yg1968 »

Online ZachS09

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #10 on: 04/13/2021 09:03 pm »
If I had to guess what the booster recovery profile could be, given Griffin/VIPER is a small payload, the side boosters could land at LZ-1 and LZ-2 while the center core is expended.

Just my opinion.
Liftoff for St. Jude's! Go Dragon, Go Falcon, Godspeed Inspiration4!

Offline yg1968

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #11 on: 04/13/2021 09:07 pm »
As a side note, I am guessing this FH will have a regular fairing since it has to fit within Astrobotic's $199.5M budget for the mission.
It most probably will have a short one because I seriously doubt they are volume constrained in a high energy, non-aerobreaking mission. But the price difference shouldn’t be too high. Even if the long fairing requires VI, the VIF will already be paid for by DoD and NASA.

You might be right about that. But it's hard to say. It's not clear if the development of the extended fairing gets paid in full over the first two flights.
« Last Edit: 04/13/2021 09:08 pm by yg1968 »

Offline GWH

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #12 on: 04/14/2021 05:32 am »
If I had to guess what the booster recovery profile could be, given Griffin/VIPER is a small payload, the side boosters could land at LZ-1 and LZ-2 while the center core is expended.

Just my opinion.

They should be able to recover all 3 IMO.

Delta V from TLI to lunar surface is about 2.7 km/s. So assuming 500kg payload, 1000 kg dry mass and 300 seconds ISP Griffin would need 2500kg propellant - 4000 kg fully loaded.

NASA LSP puts Falcon Heacy recovery at 6690lg to escape (teensy bit higher energy than TLi) so should be the drone ship for the center core.

I think the cost would be too high for Astrobotic if they had to expend a core.

Offline GWH

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #13 on: 04/14/2021 05:35 am »
As a side note, I am guessing this FH will have a regular fairing since it has to fit within Astrobotic's $199.5M budget for the mission.
It most probably will have a short one because I seriously doubt they are volume constrained in a high energy, non-aerobreaking mission. But the price difference shouldn’t be too high. Even if the long fairing requires VI, the VIF will already be paid for by DoD and NASA.

Correct. Griffin's dimensions are on their website: https://www.astrobotic.com/griffin
It's 4.5m wide,  2m tall so even if its double that with Viper on top that is plenty of room.

Offline Jansen

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #14 on: 04/14/2021 09:00 pm »
https://spaceflightnow.com/2021/04/13/astrobotic-selects-spacexs-falcon-heavy-to-launch-robotic-lunar-lander/

SpaceFlight Now has detailed coverage and an interview with Daniel Gillies, Astrobotic’s mission manager for the first Griffin lander.

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“It’s kind of a short and stout lander,” Gillies said. “It’s as wide as the fairing possibly allows. It’s got legs that hang down below the separation plane, which is different than a … satellite. In terms of height, with VIPER, it’s a few meters tall.”
« Last Edit: 04/14/2021 09:10 pm by Jansen »

Offline AU1.52

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #15 on: 04/16/2021 09:59 pm »
Meaning of Elon’s tweet at the weekend is now clear

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1380781539647053826

Quote
… going to moon very soon


Now we know Elon has an ear to the future. HLS!!!!

Offline StraumliBlight

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: 2023
« Reply #16 on: 10/28/2021 07:38 am »
NASA’s Artemis Rover Passes Critical Design Review

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NASA’s first lunar mobile robot, the Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) has passed its Critical Design Review (CDR), a critical milestone indicating that the rover has a completed design and has been approved by an independent NASA review board. The mission can now turn its attention to the construction of the rover itself, which will launch on a SpaceX Falcon-Heavy rocket for delivery to the Moon by Astrobotic’s Griffin lander under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative.

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“The VIPER team has been focused on completing the design of this clever little mission, bringing us to this culminating review,” said Daniel Andrews, VIPER project manager. “With an approved design, the team now looks toward turning that design into real hardware, bringing VIPER to life in 2022.”

Construction of the rover will begin in late 2022 at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, while the rover flight software and navigation system design will take place at Ames. Astrobotic will receive the complete rover with its scientific instruments in mid-2023 in preparation for launch later that year.


Online scr00chy

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: late 2024
« Reply #18 on: 07/19/2022 12:24 am »
Delayed to November 2024

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-replans-clps-delivery-of-viper-to-2024-to-reduce-risk

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NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative allows rapid acquisition of lunar delivery services from American companies for payloads that advance capabilities for science, exploration or commercial development of the Moon. Through CLPS, NASA contracted Astrobotic of Pittsburgh to deliver the agency’s Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) to the lunar surface in search of ice and other potential resources. The measurements returned by VIPER will provide insight into the origin and distribution of water on the Moon and help determine how the Moon’s resources could be harvested for future human space exploration. While VIPER was originally scheduled for lunar delivery by Astrobotic in November 2023, NASA has requested the Astrobotic and VIPER mission teams to adjust VIPER’s delivery to the Moon’s South Pole to November 2024.

NASA’s decision to pursue a 2024 delivery date results from the agency’s request to Astrobotic for additional ground testing of the company’s Griffin lunar lander, which will deliver VIPER to the lunar surface through CLPS. The additional tests aim to reduce the overall risk to VIPER’s delivery to the Moon. To complete the additional NASA-mandated tests of the Griffin lunar lander, an additional $67.8 million has been added to Astrobotic’s CLPS contract, which now totals $320.4 million.

“Through CLPS, NASA has tasked U.S. companies to perform a very challenging technological feat – to successfully land and operate on the Moon,” said Joel Kearns, deputy associate administrator for exploration in NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. “VIPER is NASA’s largest and most sophisticated science payload to be delivered to the Moon through CLPS, and we've implemented enhanced lander testing for this particular CLPS surface delivery.”

CLPS is a key part of NASA’s Artemis lunar exploration plans. The science and technology payloads sent to the Moon’s surface will help lay the foundation for human missions on and around the Moon. The agency has made seven task order awards to CLPS providers for lunar deliveries between in the early 2020s with more delivery awards expected through 2028.


Offline bolun

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Re: SpaceX Falcon Heavy: Astrobotic Griffin/VIPER: late 2024
« Reply #19 on: 09/25/2022 05:48 pm »

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