With just about 1 month before launch, any photos available of the LV? Thank you.
Looks like launch has been pushed back to December 3rd.
The Delta 4-Heavy’s three first stage Common Booster Cores, each powered by an Aerojet Rocketdyne RS-68A main engine, and single-engine upper stage have been raised at Vandenberg’s Space Launch Complex-6 launch pad, nestled between hills overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The rocket’s installation on the launch pad signals the start of several months of testing and checkouts.
Re: progress of launch campaign:Air Force releases new target dates for upcoming military launches, dated September 7QuoteThe Delta 4-Heavy’s three first stage Common Booster Cores, each powered by an Aerojet Rocketdyne RS-68A main engine, and single-engine upper stage have been raised at Vandenberg’s Space Launch Complex-6 launch pad, nestled between hills overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The rocket’s installation on the launch pad signals the start of several months of testing and checkouts.
Quote from: zubenelgenubi on 09/10/2018 10:15 pmRe: progress of launch campaign:Air Force releases new target dates for upcoming military launches, dated September 7QuoteThe Delta 4-Heavy’s three first stage Common Booster Cores, each powered by an Aerojet Rocketdyne RS-68A main engine, and single-engine upper stage have been raised at Vandenberg’s Space Launch Complex-6 launch pad, nestled between hills overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The rocket’s installation on the launch pad signals the start of several months of testing and checkouts.Pictures, anybody? Will this be the first time Delta-IV Heavy will potentially launch twice in the same calendar year?
Pictures, anybody? Will this be the first time Delta-IV Heavy will potentially launch twice in the same calendar year?
Well, the rocket is stacked but you'll probably have to wait for the usual SFN pictures.
Quote from: tyrred on 09/11/2018 10:29 amQuote from: zubenelgenubi on 09/10/2018 10:15 pmRe: progress of launch campaign:Air Force releases new target dates for upcoming military launches, dated September 7QuoteThe Delta 4-Heavy’s three first stage Common Booster Cores, each powered by an Aerojet Rocketdyne RS-68A main engine, and single-engine upper stage have been raised at Vandenberg’s Space Launch Complex-6 launch pad, nestled between hills overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The rocket’s installation on the launch pad signals the start of several months of testing and checkouts.Pictures, anybody? Will this be the first time Delta-IV Heavy will potentially launch twice in the same calendar year?Surprisingly, yes. All other Delta IV Heavy vehicles launched once in a single year.
Quote from: zubenelgenubi on 12/31/2017 08:56 pmQuote from: Star One on 12/31/2017 08:24 pmI want to see what happens if the early KH-11s are declassified this year does that mean the whole program is semi-declassified in that they will at least acknowledge this is a KH-11 launch.Maybe not?If the changes to the original (not yet confirmed) Block I design compared to this (hypothesized) Block V design are substantial enough, then one could make the argument to truncate the KH-11 designation to the previous 4 blocks, and not officially acknowledge the new block items as a KH-11s?Sophistry? Perhaps. Convenient to the needs of the organization(s)? Also, perhaps. Anyways, just a thought.Just seems an unnecessary complication. From my prospective in this case identifying the payload doesn’t tell you anything that couldn’t be easily obtained through a telescope for a foreign power such as orbit etc.By the way I reckon they’ll only declassify the block 1 versions as they are probably deemed sufficiently outdated that they are safe to declassify.
Quote from: Star One on 12/31/2017 08:24 pmI want to see what happens if the early KH-11s are declassified this year does that mean the whole program is semi-declassified in that they will at least acknowledge this is a KH-11 launch.Maybe not?If the changes to the original (not yet confirmed) Block I design compared to this (hypothesized) Block V design are substantial enough, then one could make the argument to truncate the KH-11 designation to the previous 4 blocks, and not officially acknowledge the new block items as a KH-11s?Sophistry? Perhaps. Convenient to the needs of the organization(s)? Also, perhaps. Anyways, just a thought.
I want to see what happens if the early KH-11s are declassified this year does that mean the whole program is semi-declassified in that they will at least acknowledge this is a KH-11 launch.
ULA's next launch is the NROL-71 mission for the National Reconnaisance Office on a Delta IV Heavy rocket. The launch is scheduled for Nov. 29 from Space Launch Complex-6 at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.
All four satellites remain in operation today, with the two Delta 4-Heavy payloads in the typical, elliptical orbits used by KH-11 and the Titan 4 craft repositioned into fuel-hungry, circular orbits that could be a clue to the operating scheme of the future follow-on series.“USA 161 and USA 186 remain in orbit, but they significantly reduced their mean altitude since their replacements were launched, which may offer a preview of what to expect from the next-generation spacecraft,” [Ted] Molczan said. “These more circular orbits offer more consistent resolution during each revolution, at the expense of greater drag, which requires more fuel for altitude maintenance.”<snip>“I speculate that the next-generation spacecraft may be designed to take full advantage of the performance of the Delta 4-Heavy, to carry a much greater fuel load than was possible with the Titan 3 and 4 rockets used to launch the previous generations. That would enable them to adopt the present orbits of USA 161 and USA 186 as the new KH-11 standard,” said Molczan.
