SpaceX F9 : Transporter 2 : CCSFS SLC-40 : 30 June 2021 (19:31 UTC)

[gongora]

[Space News] DoD space agency launching experiments in preparation for 2022 satellite deployments

One of those experiments is Mandrake 2 — a pair of small spacecraft equipped with optical crosslinks that was scheduled to launch Jan. 24 on SpaceX’s massive rideshare Transporter-1. The satellites were accidentally damaged during payload processing and didn’t make the launch. They are now being repaired and will fly to orbit this summer on SpaceX’s next rideshare mission Transporter-2, said Derek Tournear, director of the Defense Department’s Space Development Agency
....
Also expected to ride to space on Transporter-2 is an SDA optical crosslink demonstration with two satellites made by General Atomics, Tournear said.

There is a picture of the Mandrake sats in the article.

[Jrcraft]

The 9 Alba PocketQubes are:
DelfiPQ
Grizu-263a
TRSI-2
Hades
EASat-2
SATTLA-2
Unicorn 1, 2A, & 2D
According to https://www.albaorbital.com/integration

[gongora]

The 9 Alba PocketQubes are:
DelfiPQ
Grizu-263a
TRSI-2
Hades
EASat-2
SATTLA-2
Unicorn 1, 2A, & 2D
According to https://www.albaorbital.com/integration

Let the fun begin.  Those listed sats would fill three of Alba Orbital's 6P PocketQube deployers.  They don't include Challenger, the paperwork for which mentioned being on the Momentus port for this launch.  The Momentus ODAR for Vigoride-1 says there are no PocketQubes on the Vigoride and there are three PocketQube deployers on the Plaza Deck.

edit:  If Vigoride-2 is also on this flight then it would solve the problem.

[Jrcraft]

The 9 Alba PocketQubes are:
DelfiPQ
Grizu-263a
TRSI-2
Hades
EASat-2
SATTLA-2
Unicorn 1, 2A, & 2D
According to https://www.albaorbital.com/integration

Let the fun begin.  Those listed sats would fill three PocketQube deployers.  They don't include Challenger, the paperwork for which mentioned being on the Momentus port for this launch.  The Momentus ODAR says there are no PocketQubes on the Vigoride and there are three PocketQube deployers on the Plaza Deck.

Challenger is one of the FOSSA deployed PocketQube, not an Alba deployed one. https://fossa.systems/2020/09/02/fossa-systems-and-momentus-announce-launch-of-nine-pocketqube-satellites/

edit:  If Vigoride-2 is also on this flight then it would solve the problem.

Yeah, the Alba ones are part of Momentus 1 and FOSSA was AFAIK Momentus 2.

[gongora]

and so it is...

Momentus Inc. (“Momentus”) submits an updated orbital debris assessment report (“ODAR”) and ownership exhibit. In relevant part, the ODAR reflects changes in:
• VR-2’s scheduled launch date from February 2021 to June 2021;

VR-2 includes a primary and a secondary structural assembly with: Propellant Tanks, MET, Reaction Control System thrusters, Solar Array Assemblies, a launch vehicle separation ring, two ISIS 12U cubesat deployers, three 12U cubesat deployer mass dummies, one 3U cubesat deployer, and two PocketPod deployers.

[russianhalo117]

The 9 Alba PocketQubes are:
DelfiPQ
Grizu-263a
TRSI-2
Hades
EASat-2
SATTLA-2
Unicorn 1, 2A, & 2D
According to https://www.albaorbital.com/integration

Let the fun begin.  Those listed sats would fill three of Alba Orbital's 6P PocketQube deployers.  They don't include Challenger, the paperwork for which mentioned being on the Momentus port for this launch.  The Momentus ODAR for Vigoride-1 says there are no PocketQubes on the Vigoride and there are three PocketQube deployers on the Plaza Deck.

edit:  If Vigoride-2 is also on this flight then it would solve the problem.

all i have found so far is Vigoride-2 hasn't slipped to the right though to throw a spanner in the works the Vigoride supposedly flying on CAS-500-1 launch hasnt been numbered yet so may have decided to distinguish launch providers.

[scr00chy]

I'm not so sure about this launching from Vandenberg.

With Transporter-1, I remember there was some documentation mentioning Vandenberg also, but then it launched from SLC-40. I think it's the same here. For example, the Momentus PDF above says:

Expected Launch Site: Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex (SLC-40 or SLCE-4E).

I suspect VAFB might be more of a backup launch site for the Transporter missions.

[PM3]

   Vigoride-2
      Two ISIS 12U quadpack deployers used for 10 Momentus payloads
         -
      3U deployer from New Production Concept, Italy
         ?
      Fossa (2x 8P PocketQube deployers)
         CSHARKPILOT-1(FOSSASAT-2E) (2P) (CShark, Italy)
         LAIKA(FOSSASAT-2B) (2P) (porkchop, Sweden)
         Challenger (3P) (Mini-Cubes, US)
         SanoSat-1 (1P) (ORIONSpace, Nepal)
         TRSI3 (1P)
         Canary Hatchling (1P) (Care Weather, US)
         FOSSASAT-2C,2D,2F (3x 2P)

As they have re-manifested VR-2 to Transporter-2 (see post #24), this would also include from page 3-4 of https://licensing.fcc.gov/myibfs/download.do?attachment_key=2692615:

     Broncosat-1 (1,5U, Bronco Space)
     Dodona (3U, Lockheed Martin)
     Guardian-Alpha (3U, Orbital Astronautics)
     Neptuno (3U, Deimos)
     Oresat 0 (1U, Portland State Aerospace Society)
     QMR-QWT (1U, Solar Space)
     Gossamer (1U, LunaSonde)
     Revela (1U, ARCA Dynamics)
     FEES-2 (0.5U, GP Advanced Projects)
     Bhaarathiya-Sat (SpaceKidz India)

Exolaunch (~30 sats)
...
Loft Orbital YAM-3 satellite

YAM-3 is with Exolaunch (https://fcc.report/IBFS/SAT-LOA-20200907-00105/2702543)

Satellogic (x4)

"at least four" (Spacenews)

Assuming 20 sats on ION, I now count a minimum of 135 manifested satellites on this launch (including 2 Sherpa, 2 Vigoride, 1 ION), with a good chance to break the Transporter-1 record of 143.

[PM3]

One of the VR-2 payloads mentioned in the previous post:

Kuwait’s first nanosatellite – QMR-KWT – is currently undergoing functional tests in Sofia, Bulgaria, overseen by mission contractor Dubai-based Orbital Space, ahead of the nanosatellite’s scheduled launch later this year.
...
The 1U CubeSat is due to launch into space from the United States as part of a second Momentus Vigoride demo mission payload aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in June 2021.

https://arabspacenews.com/qmr-kwt-nanosatellite/ - 7 February 2021

[gongora]

The Orbit Fab Tenzing sat listed as a backup payload for the Spaceflight Inc. Sherpas.  First demo of an on-orbit refueling station in SSO, holding some green propellant.  Satellite built by Astro Digital, will also demo Accion Systems TILE thrusters, and there is a satellite observation/inspection vision system hosted payload from SCOUT.  I guess this could end up on the December flight if they don't find room for it in June.

https://spacenews.com/orbit-fab-to-launch-with-spaceflight/
http://spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=56799
https://www.orbitfab.space/products

[gongora]

ICEYE US applied for a license to launch six satellites, with the first scheduled to ride on this flight.

SAT-LOA-20210212-00021

This application mentions a Florida launch.  Most earlier indications were Vandenberg.  We'll see where it ends up.

[Huskymaniac]

June is not far away at all.  Shouldn't they be firming up the date and location very soon?

[gongora]

[ISISPACE] Kleos completes key satellite development milestone for mid-year SpaceX launch
Andreia March 2, 2021

Polar Vigilance Mission (KSF1) satellites have passed a hardware critical design review milestone with satellite builder ISISPACE
Satellites now enter Assembly Phase with ISISPACE for a mid-2021 launch onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 vehicle
Kleos’ Scouting Mission satellites (KSM1) in commission and test phase

Luxembourg – Kleos Space S.A. (ASX: KSS, Frankfurt: KS1,) a space-powered Radio Frequency Reconnaissance data-as-a-service (DaaS) company, confirms its second satellite cluster, the Polar Vigilance Mission (KSF1), has successfully completed a hardware critical design review milestone for a launch mid-year onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9. Conducted, in the Netherlands, by satellite developer ISISPACE, passing the milestone ensures that Kleos’ Polar Vigilance Mission satellites can enter the assembly and verification phase – an exciting stage leads to final integration, testing and delivery of the satellites for launch.

The KSF1 Polar Vigilance Mission satellites are scheduled for a mid-2021 launch onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9, under a rideshare contract with Spaceflight Inc. The satellites will be launched into a 500-600km Sun Synchronous Orbit, complementing Kleos’ Scouting Mission 37o orbit, which successfully launched in early November 2020 and is in the commission and test phase.

Kleos’ satellites will detect and geolocate radio frequency transmissions to provide global activity-based intelligence, enhancing the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities of governments and commercial entities when tracking systems are defeated, imagery unclear or targets out of patrol range.

Kleos Space CEO Andy Bowyer said: “We are excited to be progressing our second satellite cluster with ISISPACE – a leader in the small satellite market. Entering the assembly and verification phase of the satellites is a crucial developmental milestone and ensures we are on schedule to launch in mid-2021. The KSF1 satellite cluster will complement our Scouting Mission satellites, improving the value of our geolocation maritime intelligence data.”

ISISPACE’s CEO Jeroen Rotteveel states: “We are pleased to design and build this second satellite cluster for Kleos, to be completed on a fast-track schedule made possible by building on our extensive nanosatellite expertise and heritage. Despite the challenging timeline given the current global situation, we are keen to enter this next crucial phase of satellite assembly and validation and bringing our design to reality.”

As a strategic partner, ISISPACE further supports Kleos with its knowledge and experience to provide review and inputs for Kleos’ future needs and capabilities.

Figure 1 – The 6U CubeSat Platform rendering.

[gongora]

Space AI SAI-2 6U cubesat
0173-EX-CN-2021

[scr00chy]

Space AI SAI-2 6U cubesat
0173-EX-CN-2021

Nice find! From the PDF:

The experimental SAI-2 mission are free flying mission and is schedule to flight by end of June 2021

[gongora]

In a "State of Vandenberg" address this flight was shown on their 2021 manifest.

[gongora]

https://redwirespace.com/2021/03/09/redwire-selected-as-solar-array-supplier-for-planetiq-constellation-spacecraft/

In June 2021, PlanetiQ launches their next GNSS Navigation and Occultation Measurement Satellite (GNOMES) on the Transporter 2 launch out of Cape Canaveral.

[gongora]

There's no doubt this was scheduled for Vandenberg.  With the move of the only booster that was on the west coast, I'm not so sure that it is still scheduled for Vandenberg.

[gongora]

And finally, some payloads were scheduled to launch on Transporter-1 but didn't make it in the end. So some of those could have been moved to Transporter-2 also:

GNOMES-2
CPOD A+B
LINCS A+B
ADELIS-SAMSON (3 sats)
Landmapper-Demo6+Demo7
Umbra-2001

ADELIS_SAMSON moved to the March Soyuz launch.

[SolSystem]

You can remove U. of Toronto HERON MkII. They ran into some radio licensing issues and have told me their looking at a launch later in the year now.

Spaceflight Inc. submitted FCC paperwork for this flight.  They have two Sherpas, Sherpa-FX2 and Sherpa-LTE1.  Both will deploy their customer payloads shortly after separating from the second stage.  LTE-1 will then test the new attitude control, UHF communications, power, and electric propulsion systems over the next several months while lowering its orbit to 350km.

SAT-STA-20210205-00017

   Sherpa-FX2
      Astrocast (x5) (cubesat, prop)
      Spire LEMUR (x4) (cubesat, no prop)
      Hawkeye 360 Hawk (x3) (microsatellite, prop)
      Lynk Lynk-06 (microsatellite, no prop)
      Swarm SpaceBEE (x12) (.25U cubesat, four have prop)
      (hosted payload) SOARS (KeplarianTech, Tiger Innovations)
      (hosted payload) TagSat-2 (NearSpace Launch)
      (hosted payload) NFB-4 (Stellar Exploration)

   Sherpa-LTE1
      AstroDigital Shasta (microsatellite, no prop)
      Kleos KSM-2 (x5) (cubesat, prop)
      InSpace Faraday Phoenix (cubesat, no prop)
      OQTech Tiger-2 (cubesat, no prop)
      U. of Toronto HERON MkII (cubesat, no prop)
      CISESE PAINANI-II (cubesat, no prop)
      Aerospacelab ARTHUR-1 (cubesat, prop)
      Hawkeye 360 Hawk (x3) (microsatellite, prop)

   Backup payload: Orbit Fab Tenzing (microsatellite)