Author Topic: Ariane 5 VA241 -SES-14 (with NASA GOLD payload) & Al Yah-3 Jan. 25, 2018 UPDATES  (Read 240240 times)

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Ariane 5   December 22, 2017
Both satellites for Arianespace’s first launch of 2018 are in French Guiana

As another year of successful Arianespace launch activity draws to a close, both satellites for its first mission of 2018 are now in French Guiana – positioning them for liftoff January 25 from the Spaceport on a heavy-lift Ariane 5.

Arriving today was SES-14 for Luxembourg-based telecommunications satellite operator SES, which was flown into Félix Eboué Airport near the French Guiana capital city of Cayenne. Once it is transferred by road to the Spaceport, it will join the mission’s other payload: Al Yah 3 for Al Yah Satellite Communications Company PrJSC, located in the United Arab Emirates at Abu Dhabi.

The January 25 mission to geostationary transfer orbit is designated Flight VA241 in Arianespace’s launcher family numbering system, signifying the 241st flight of an Ariane series launch vehicle.

SES-14 will rely on electric propulsion and will be equipped with an electric plasma propulsion system for orbit raising and in-orbit maneuvers.

C- and Ku-band coverage with SES-14

To be positioned at 47.5 degrees West, SES-14 will serve Latin America, the Caribbean, North America and the North Atlantic region with its C- and Ku-band wide beam coverage as well as Ku-band high throughput spot beams coverage.

The relay platform’s C-band wide beams are designed to expand the reach of SES’s second cable neighborhood in Latin America, while its Ku-band high throughput spot beams will serve the dynamic aeronautical market and other traffic-intensive applications such as maritime, cellular backhaul or broadband services. Ku-band wide beams on the spacecraft also will serve growing direct-to-home and VSAT services in the Americas and the North Atlantic.

The spacecraft also has a NASA-funded hosted payload for the Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) mission, which is to deepen scientists’ understanding of the nearest reaches of space. GOLD will provide unprecedented imaging of the Earth’s upper atmosphere from geostationary orbit, and will be the first mission with a cadence fast enough to study the daily weather of the thermosphere-ionosphere rather than its long-term climate.

Al Yah 3 undergoes pre-launch processing at the Spaceport

With SES-14’s arrival in French Guiana, the satellite will join Flight VA241’s other passenger, Al Yah 3, which is undergoing pre-launch preparations in the Spaceport’s S5 payload processing facility.

Al Yah 3 is the first hybrid electric propulsion GEOStar-3 satellite to be completed by Orbital ATK. It was built at the U.S. company’s satellite manufacturing facility in Dulles, Virginia, and shipped to the launch site on November 28.

As an all Ka-band high-throughput and light-weight satellite, Al Yah 3 will provide affordable broadband communications to 60 percent of Africa’s population and more than 95 percent of Brazil’s population

http://www.arianespace.com/mission-update/payloads-for-first-2018-launch/

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Al Yah 3 is shown during preparations in the Spaceport’s S5 payload processing facility.

Offline catdlr

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Why NASA Is Exploring The Edge Of Our Planet

NASA Goddard
Published on Jan 5, 2018

The Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk, or GOLD, instrument launches aboard a commercial communications satellite in January 2018 to provide the most comprehensive observations of the ionosphere we’ve ever had.

Above the ozone layer, the ionosphere is a part of Earth’s atmosphere where particles have been cooked into a sea of electrically-charged electrons and ions by the Sun’s radiation. The ionosphere is co-mingled with the very highest — and quite thin — layers of Earth’s neutral upper atmosphere, making this region an area that is constantly in flux undergoing the push-and-pull between Earth’s conditions and those in space. Increasingly, these layers of near-Earth space are part of the human domain, as it’s home not only to astronauts, but to radio signals used to guide airplanes and ships, and satellites that provide our communications and GPS systems. Understanding the fundamental processes that govern our upper atmosphere and ionosphere is crucial to improve situational awareness that helps protect astronauts, spacecraft and humans on the ground.

This video is public domain and along with other supporting visualizations can be downloaded from the Scientific Visualization Studio at: http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/12817

Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Joy Ng

Music credits: ‘Faint Glimmer’ by Andrew John Skeet [PRS], Andrew Michael Britton [PRS], David Stephen Goldsmith [PRS], ‘Ocean Spirals’ by Andrew John Skeet [PRS], Andrew Michael Britton [PRS], David Stephen Goldsmith [PRS] from Killer Tracks.



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http://www.arianespace.com/mission-update/arianespace-mission-preparations/

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Arianespace’s busy 2018 kicks into gear with key preparation milestones for the year’s first Ariane 5 and Soyuz missions

French Guiana’s Spaceport is busy with activity as preparations advance for Arianespace’s initial Ariane 5 and Soyuz missions of 2018, which will set the stage for up to 14 flights this year using its family of launchers.

The Ariane 5 mission – designated Flight VA241 in Arianespace’s numbering system – will deliver the SES-14 and Al Yah 3 satellites to geostationary transfer orbit on January 25.

Its heavy-lift vehicle (delivered by ArianeGroup as production prime contractor) currently is inside the Spaceport’s Final Assembly Building, having been transferred from the Launcher Integration Building atop a mobile launch table earlier in the week.

With Ariane 5 in position at the Final Assembly Building, the launcher is ready to receive its two satellite passengers, which have undergone their own pre-flight preparations inside the Spaceport’s S5 payload processing facility. The forthcoming integration activity will be followed by final verifications and subsequent rollout to the ELA-3 complex for liftoff.

Payload profiles for Flight VA241 with Ariane 5
Arianespace is orbiting SES-14 for Luxembourg-based telecommunications satellite operator SES. The spacecraft will serve Latin America, the Caribbean, North America and the North Atlantic region with its C- and Ku-band wide beam coverage, as well as Ku-band high-throughput spot beams coverage. It was produced by Airbus.

SES-14 also has a NASA-funded hosted payload for the Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) mission, which is to deepen scientists’ understanding of the nearest reaches of space by providing unprecedented imaging of the Earth’s upper atmosphere from geostationary orbit.

Flight VA241’s Al Yah 3 passenger will be operated by Al Yah Satellite Communications Company PrJSC, which is located in the United Arab Emirates at Abu Dhabi. Once in orbit, the Orbital ATK-built, all-Ka-band spacecraft will provide affordable broadband communications to 60 percent of Africa’s population and more than 95 percent of Brazil’s population.

Offline Lewis007

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VA241 launch art

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Launch kit attached.


Offline bolun

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January 19, 2018

Launcher build-up completed: SES-14 and Al Yah 3 are integrated for Arianespace’s next Ariane 5 liftoff

The Ariane 5 for Arianespace’s upcoming mission from French Guiana is now complete following integration of its two satellite passengers: SES-14 for operator SES and Yahsat’s Al Yah 3 – both of which will be delivered to geostationary transfer orbit on a flight planned for January 25.

Encapsulated in the ogive-shaped protective fairing, SES-14 has been positioned atop Al Yah 3 – which was installed on the launcher’s cryogenic core stage during previous activity inside the Spaceport’s Final Assembly Building for Ariane 5.

These successive integration steps enable a new series of preparation milestones to begin. They include the launch readiness review on January 23, which is to be followed by Ariane 5’s rollout to the ELA-3 launch zone the next day.

Liftoff is scheduled during a 45-min. launch window opening January 25 at 7:20 p.m. local time in French Guiana, with the two spacecraft to be deployed on a flight lasting 35 minutes.

Ariane 5 will deliver a total payload lift performance of more than 9,100 kg. during the mission – with this combined mass factoring in SES-14 and Al Yah 3, plus the launch vehicle’s dual-passenger dispenser system and satellite integration hardware.

Next week’s mission is designated VA241, marking the 241st flight using an Ariane vehicle since this European series of launchers entered service in 1979. It kicks off another busy year of activity for Arianespace, which has the objective of performing as many as 14 missions in 2018 with its full launcher family – consisting of the heavy-lift Ariane 5, medium-lift Soyuz and lightweight Vega.

http://www.arianespace.com/mission-update/launcher-build-up-completed-ses-14-and-al-yah-3-are-integrated-for-arianespaces-next-ariane-5-liftoff/

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Getting close to launch, logo's placed on the fairing #Ariane5 #VA241 #CSG @SES_Satellites @NASAGOLD

https://twitter.com/dutchspace/status/955502955062538243

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Do we have the serial number of this launcher?

Offline ZachS09

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Do we have the serial number of this launcher?

According to Gunter's Space Page, the serial number is VA-241/5101.
Liftoff for St. Jude's! Go Dragon, Go Falcon, Godspeed Inspiration4!

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Jacques :-)

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Momentum is building for Flight #VA241, #Arianespace’s first mission in 2018! Today’s readiness review cleared the #Ariane5 for tomorrow’s rollout to the ELA-3 launch zone. Liftoff is scheduled on January 25.

https://twitter.com/arianespaceceo/status/955872900904640512

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January 23, 2018
MEDIA ADVISORY M18-015

NASA Media Call Previews Upcoming Mission to Explore Atmospheric Border

NASA’s new GOLD mission observes airglow to research this dynamic region of space and how it interacts with the upper atmosphere

NASA will host a media teleconference at 1 p.m. EST Wednesday, Jan. 24, to discuss the upcoming launch of the agency’s mission to study where Earth’s atmosphere meets space.

The Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) mission is NASA’s first science mission to fly as a hosted instrument aboard a commercial communications satellite launching from French Guiana. The launch window opens at approximately 5:20 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 25.

Teleconference participants are:
•Elsayed Talaat, heliophysics chief scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington
•Richard Eastes, principal investigator at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at the University of Colorado (CU) Boulder
•Susan Batiste, systems engineer at LASP/CU
•Katelynn Greer, GOLD research scientist at LASP/CU

For information to participate in the call, media should email their name and affiliation to Karen Fox, [email protected] by 12:45 p.m. Jan. 24.

The teleconference will stream live at:

https://www.nasa.gov/live

For visuals to support the briefing, mission video and other media resources, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/mediaresources

Live launch coverage will begin on NASA Television and the agency’s website at 5 p.m.  Jan. 25. Coverage will include live-streaming from the Guiana Space Centre launch site and briefings from LASP and NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

GOLD will seek to understand what drives change in this region of the upper atmosphere where terrestrial weather in the lower atmosphere interacts with the tumult of solar activity from above, as well as Earth’s magnetic field. Resulting data will improve forecasting models of space weather events that can impact radio communications and GPS signals, as well as satellites and astronauts in space.

The instrument will fly on SES-14, built by Airbus for SES S.A., a Luxembourg-based satellite operator. LASP built the instrument, and the mission is led by the University of Central Florida in Orlando.

To learn more about the GOLD mission, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/gold
Jacques :-)

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January 23, 2018

Arianespace’s year-opening Ariane 5 flight is approved for launch

The first Arianespace mission in 2018 has been given the “green light” for its January 25 liftoff following today’s successful launch readiness review, which was conducted at the Spaceport in French Guiana.

This milestone confirmed that the Ariane 5 launcher and its dual-satellite payload – consisting of SES-14 and Al Yah 3 – are flight-ready, along with the Spaceport’s infrastructure and the network of downrange tracking stations.

With approval granted, Ariane 5 is cleared for rollout tomorrow from the Final Assembly Building to the ELA-3 launch zone – where it will be readied for liftoff on Thursday during a 45-minute launch window that opens at 7:20 p.m. local time in French Guiana. The launch vehicle is supplied to Arianespace by ArianeGroup as production prime contractor.

Two telecommunications satellite passengers

Arianespace is orbiting SES-14 for Luxembourg-based telecommunications satellite operator SES. This Airbus Defence and Space-produced spacecraft – based on the E3000 EOR (Electric Orbit Raising) version of the Eurostar E3000 platform – will serve Latin America, the Caribbean, North America and the North Atlantic region with its C- and Ku-band wide beam coverage, as well as Ku-band high-throughput spot beams coverage.

SES-14 also has a NASA-funded hosted payload for the Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) mission, which is to deepen scientists’ understanding of the nearest reaches of space by providing unprecedented imaging of the Earth’s upper atmosphere from geostationary orbit.

The SES-14 satellite is in Ariane 5’s upper payload position, to be released first at 27 minutes into the mission.

Al Yah 3 will be operated by Yahsat, which is located in the United Arab Emirates at Abu Dhabi. Once in orbit, the all-Ka-band spacecraft – built by Orbital ATK using its new GEOStar-3 hybrid platform – will provide affordable broadband communications to 60 percent of Africa’s population and more than 95 percent of Brazil’s population.

As the lower payload on Ariane 5, Al Yah 3 is to be deployed by Ariane 5 at 35 minutes after liftoff.

The January 25 mission is designated VA241, denoting the 241st flight using an Ariane vehicle since this European series of launchers entered service in 1979. It opens a busy year of activity for Arianespace, which will perform as many as 14 missions in 2018 with its full launcher family – consisting of the heavy-lift Ariane 5, medium-lift Soyuz and lightweight Vega.

http://www.arianespace.com/mission-update/va241-launch-readiness-review/
Jacques :-)

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Jacques :-)

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Jacques :-)

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Preparations are continuing at the Spaceport: #Ariane5 has moved to the launch zone for its January 25 dual-payload mission at the service of @SES_Satellites and @yahsatofficial #VA241

https://twitter.com/arianespaceceo/status/956259800916119554

Online Galactic Penguin SST

Moved for live coverage.

Due to GOLD on board even NASA TV is going to cover this launch from 22:00 UTC onwards!  ;)
Astronomy & spaceflight geek penguin. In a relationship w/ Space Shuttle Discovery. Current Priority: Chasing the Chinese Spaceflight Wonder Egg & A Certain Chinese Mars Rover

Offline jacqmans

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January 24, 2018

Ariane 5 is in the launch zone for Arianespace’s year-opening mission
 

The Ariane 5 for Arianespace’s Flight VA241 has reached the launch zone in French Guiana, positioning this vehicle for tomorrow’s dual-payload mission with the SES-14 and Al Yah 3 telecommunications satellites.

Riding atop a mobile launch table, Ariane 5 today completed its transfer from the Spaceport’s Final Assembly Building – where its two passengers were integrated – to the dedicated ELA-3 launch complex. This paves the way for tomorrow’s liftoff, which is planned during a 45-min. launch window that opens January 25 at 7:20 p.m. local time in French Guiana.

Today’s rollout from the Spaceport’s Final Assembly Building marked one of the final milestones in preparations for Flight VA241, which will kick off Arianespace’s 2018 launch activity. The company is planning up to 14 missions this year using the heavy-lift Ariane 5, medium-lift Soyuz and lightweight Vega.

Hybrid- and fully-electric propulsion for Ariane 5’s payloads
Flight VA241 will be carrying a payload estimated at approximately 9,120 kg. This total factors in the two satellite passengers’ combined liftoff mass, as well as hardware for Ariane 5’s dual-payload deployment system.

Riding in Ariane 5’s upper position, SES-14 is to be deployed first in the flight sequence, with its separation occurring 27 minutes after liftoff. The spacecraft – produced by Airbus Defence and Space for operator SES based on the E3000 EOR (Electric Orbit Raising) version of its Eurostar E3000 platform – will serve Latin America, the Caribbean, North America and the North Atlantic region with its C- and Ku-band wide beam coverage, as well as Ku-band high-throughput spot beams coverage.

SES-14 also has a NASA-funded hosted payload for the Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) mission, which is to improve understanding of the thermosphere-ionosphere.

Completing the mission will be the separation of Ariane 5’s lower passenger, Al Yah 3, which will occur 35 minutes after the flight begins. Built by Orbital ATK using its new GEOStar-3 hybrid platform, the satellite will be operated by Yahsat to provide affordable broadband communications to 60 percent of Africa’s population and more than 95 percent of Brazil’s population. The GEOStar-3 platform’s hybrid design uses traditional chemical propulsion to reach orbit in a matter of days, and then performs station-keeping operations for 15 years or more with electric propulsion, resulting in an optimum mass-efficient system.

http://www.arianespace.com/mission-update/va241-ariane-5-rollout/
Jacques :-)

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