Author Topic: FAILED: Taurus XL, GLORY - March 4, 2011 - VAFB  (Read 214702 times)

Offline jacqmans

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #40 on: 01/11/2011 06:45 pm »
RELEASE: 01-11

NASA'S GLORY SATELLITE ARRIVES AT VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE FOR LAUNCH

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- The latest Earth-observing
satellite developed by NASA, called Glory, arrived Tuesday at
Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., in preparation for a Feb. 23
launch. Glory was transported by truck from Orbital Sciences
Corporation's satellite design, production and testing facility in
Dulles, Va.

Glory is NASA's next Earth-observing research mission that will
improve our understanding of how the sun and airborne particles
called aerosols affect Earth's climate. It will join the Afternoon
Constellation or "A-train" of polar-orbiting satellites, a group that
includes the Aqua and Aura satellites. Glory will carry two primary
instruments, the Aerosol Polarimetry Sensor (APS) and the Total
Irradiance Monitor (TIM). APS will measure aerosols in the Earth's
atmosphere and will take advantage of the A-train orbit by gathering
coincident data with other atmospheric science instruments. TIM will
point towards the sun and continue the 32-year data record of the
sun's brightness, or total solar irradiance.

"The scientific knowledge gained from Glory will have a significant
impact on our understanding of natural and human influences on
climate," said Hal Maring, Glory program scientist at NASA
Headquarters, Washington.

On Jan. 18, Stage 0 of Orbital's Taurus XL 3110 four-stage rocket will
be moved to the launch pad and hoisted into position. Stages 1, 2 and
3 will join stage 0 on the pad on Jan 25. The Glory spacecraft will
be enclosed in the Taurus XL payload fairing on Feb. 4-5 and
transported to the launch pad to be mated to the third stage of the
rocket the following day. Once the spacecraft is integrated with
stages 1, 2, and 3, the entire unit will be rotated to vertical and
hoisted atop stage 0 on Feb. 15.

On Feb. 23, Glory is scheduled to launch from Vandenberg's Space
Launch Complex 576-E at 2:09 a.m. PST (5:09 a.m. EST). After launch,
mission operators will conduct verification tests for 30 days and
then begin normal data collection for a period of at least three
years. Glory will fly in a low-Earth orbit of 438 miles (705 km)
altitude, which is about the distance between Boston and Washington.

Glory is managed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt,
Md., for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. Launch
management is the responsibility of NASA's Launch Services Program at
the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Orbital is responsible for the Glory satellite's design, manufacture,
payload integration and testing, as well as spacecraft operations
conducted from its Mission Operations Complex in Dulles, Va. Orbital
is also responsible for the mission's launch service with its Taurus
XL rocket. The Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the
University of Colorado provided and will operate the TIM instrument.
Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems in El Segundo, Calif., provided
the APS instrument, which will be operated by NASA's Goddard
Institute for Space Studies in New York City.

For more information about NASA's Glory Mission, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/glory

For more information about NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/goddard


-end-

Jacques :-)

Offline jacqmans

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #41 on: 01/13/2011 06:55 pm »
MEDIA ADVISORY: M11-003

NASA ANNOUNCES MEDIA BRIEFING ABOUT NEXT EARTH SCIENCE MISSION

WASHINGTON -- NASA will hold a media briefing on Thursday, Jan. 20, at
1 p.m. EST, about the agency's next Earth-observing satellite
mission, Glory, scheduled to launch on Feb. 23. During the briefing
at NASA Headquarters in Washington, panelists will discuss the
spacecraft's mission to study the impact of the sun and airborne
particles on Earth's climate.


The panelists are:
- Joy Bretthauer, Glory program executive, NASA Headquarters,
Washington
- Bryan Fafaul, Glory project manager, NASA Goddard Space Flight
Center, Greenbelt, Md.
- Michael Mishchenko, Glory project scientist, NASA Goddard Institute
for Space Studies, New York
- Greg Kopp, Total Irradiance Monitor instrument scientist, University
of Colorado at Boulder, Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics
- Brian Cairns, Aerosol Polarimetry Sensor instrument scientist, NASA
Goddard Institute for Space Studies

The briefing will be held in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA
Headquarters, 300 E St. SW, Washington. Media representatives unable
to attend in person may ask questions from participating NASA
locations or by telephone. To participate by phone, reporters must
contact Trent Perrotto at 202-358-0321 or at
[email protected] by 9 a.m. on Jan. 20.

The news conference will air live on NASA Television and the agency's
website. For NASA TV streaming video, downlink and scheduling
information, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv


For more information about Glory, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/glory

Jacques :-)

Offline Ronsmytheiii

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #42 on: 01/17/2011 01:05 am »
Quote
Workers move one half of the fairing, wrapped in plastic protective covering, into a cargo container for transport from the Orbital Sciences Corp. Building 1555 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California to the Astrotech Payload Processing Facility. Once both halves of the fairing are delivered to Astrotech they will be installed around NASA's Glory satellite to protect it from the weather at the launch pad as well as from the atmosphere during flight.

http://mediaarchive.ksc.nasa.gov/search.cfm?cat=4

Offline jacqmans

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #43 on: 01/17/2011 05:10 pm »
STATUS REPORT: ELV-011711

EXPENDABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE STATUS REPORT

Spacecraft: Glory
Launch Vehicle: Taurus XL 3110
Launch Site:  Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.
Launch Date:  Feb. 23, 2011
Launch Time: 2:09:43 a.m. PST
Altitude/Inclination: 440 miles/98.2 degrees

The Glory spacecraft arrived Jan. 11 at the Astrotech payload
processing facility on north Vandenberg Air Force Base to begin
processing and prelaunch checkout. On Jan. 12, the spacecraft was
moved into the processing high bay, the shipping container was
removed from around the spacecraft, and it was placed on a work
stand. On Jan. 13, the protective covers were taken off the satellite
so that testing could begin, and the solar arrays were also
inspected. Limited Performance Tests to Glory are now under way.

Also Jan. 13, the two Taurus XL fairing halves were moved to
Astrotech. A successful test of the fairing separation system was
conducted last week.

The Taurus rocket is in Orbital Sciences Hangar 1555 on north
Vandenberg where integration and testing of the vehicle's flight
hardware components continue. Work is under way at the launch pad to
prepare the elevated launch stand for the arrival and hoisting of
Stage 0, currently scheduled for Monday.

Data from the Glory mission will allow scientists to better understand
the Earth's energy budget. An accurate description of the Earth's
energy budget is important in order to anticipate future changes to
our climate. Shifts in the global climate and the associated weather
patterns impact human life by altering landscapes and changing the
availability of natural resources.

The Aerosol Polarimetry Sensor instrument will measure aerosols
(human-caused and naturally occurring) to determine their relative
influence on the global climate.

The Total Irradiance Monitor instrument will monitor the Sun to
understand short-term solar mechanisms causing energy budget changes
and will contribute to the vital long-term solar record.

Jacques :-)

Offline Ronsmytheiii

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #44 on: 01/18/2011 07:05 pm »
GLORY unwrapped at the Astrotech facility, and stage 0 being raised to the pad:

http://mediaarchive.ksc.nasa.gov/search.cfm?cat=4
« Last Edit: 01/18/2011 07:05 pm by Ronsmytheiii »

Offline edkyle99

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #45 on: 01/18/2011 07:42 pm »
GLORY unwrapped at the Astrotech facility, and stage 0 being raised to the pad:

http://mediaarchive.ksc.nasa.gov/search.cfm?cat=4

Picking my way through the images, I noted (I think) the following numbers stamped on the four stage motors.

Stage 0:  C120-19
Stage 1:  BF010
Stage 2:  BS009
Stage 3:  BT009

Not sure about the nomenclature, but these look like serial numbers.  Kind of a bummer that we're seeing such low numbers for a rocket that started flying 16 years ago.  Castor 120 has, of course, seen use on Athena too, explaining its higher numeration.

 - Ed Kyle

Offline jacqmans

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #46 on: 01/20/2011 05:21 pm »
RELEASE: 11-024

NASA PREPARES TO LAUNCH NEXT EARTH-OBSERVING SATELLITE MISSION

WASHINGTON -- NASA's newest Earth-observing research mission is
nearing launch. The Glory mission will improve our understanding of
how the sun and tiny atmospheric particles called aerosols affect
Earth's climate. Glory also will extend a legacy of long-term solar
measurements needed to address key uncertainties about climate
change.

Glory is scheduled to launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in
California on Feb. 23 at 5:09 a.m. EST. It will join a fleet called
the Afternoon Constellation or "A-train" of satellites. This group of
other Earth-observing satellites, including NASA's Aqua and Aura
spacecraft, flies in tight formation.

"Glory is going to help scientists tackle one of the major
uncertainties in climate change predictions identified by the United
Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change: the influence of
aerosols on the energy balance of our planet," said Michael Freilich,
director of NASA's Earth Science Division in the Science Mission
Directorate at the agency's headquarters in Washington. "This mission
also marks the first satellite launch under President Obama's climate
initiative that will advance the United States' contribution to
cutting-edge and policy-relevant climate change science."

Originally confirmed in 2005, Glory has been developed by a team of
engineers and scientists at several government, industry and academic
institutions across the country. The Glory spacecraft arrived at
Vandenberg on Jan. 11 after a cross-country road trip from Orbital
Sciences Corporation in Dulles, Va.

"The spacecraft is in place at the launch and all of the post-shipment
inspections and electrical tests have been completed," said Bryan
Fafaul, Glory project manager at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
in Greenbelt, Md. The spacecraft will be mated to Orbital's Taurus XL
3110 rocket next month.

Glory will carry new technology designed to unravel some of the most
complex elements of the Earth system. The mission carries two primary
instruments, the Aerosol Polarimetry Sensor (APS) and the Total
Irradiance Monitor (TIM). APS will improve measurement of aerosols,
the airborne particles that can influence climate by reflecting and
absorbing solar radiation and modifying clouds and precipitation.

TIM will extend a decades-long data record of the solar energy
striking the top of Earth's atmosphere, or total solar irradiance.
APS will collect data at nine different wavelengths, from the visible
to short-wave infrared, giving scientists a much-improved
understanding of aerosols. The instrument, NASA's first
Earth-orbiting polarimeter, will help scientists distinguish between
natural and human-produced aerosols. The information will be used to
refine global climate models and help scientists determine how our
planet is responding to human activities.

The TIM instrument will maintain and improve upon a 32-year record of
total solar irradiance, a value that fluctuates slightly as the sun
cycles through periods of varying intensity approximately every 11
years. While scientists have concluded that solar variability is not
the main cause of the warming observed on Earth in recent decades,
the sun has historically caused long-term climate changes. Having a
baseline of the solar energy that reaches Earth gives us a way to
evaluate future climate changes. Better measurements of total solar
irradiance give scientists another way to test their climate models
and understand the sun's longer cyclical changes and how they may
impact the climate.

Glory will fly in a low-Earth orbit at an altitude of 438 miles, about
the distance from Boston to Washington. After launch, mission
operators will conduct verification tests for 30 days and then begin
to collect data for at least three years.

Glory's Taurus launch rocket also will carry into orbit a secondary
payload: NASA's Educational Launch of Nanosatellite, or ELaNA,
mission. This mission will put three small research satellites, or
CubeSats, into orbit for Montana State University, the University of
Colorado and a consortium of state universities called Kentucky
Space.

Glory is managed by Goddard for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in
Washington. Launch management is provided by NASA's Launch Services
Program at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Orbital is responsible for Glory's design, manufacture, payload
integration, and testing, as well as spacecraft operations at its
Mission Operations Complex in Dulles, Va. The Laboratory for
Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado at
Boulder provided and will operate the TIM instrument. Raytheon Space
and Airborne Systems in El Segundo, Calif., provided the APS
instrument, which will be operated by Goddard's Institute for Space
Studies in New York.

For more information about Glory, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/glory   

Jacques :-)

Offline jacqmans

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #47 on: 01/21/2011 09:26 pm »
STATUS REPORT: ELV-012111

EXPENDABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE STATUS REPORT

Spacecraft: Glory
Launch Vehicle: Taurus XL 3110
Launch Site:  Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.
Launch Date:  Feb. 23, 2011
Launch Time: 2:09:43 a.m. PST
Altitude/Inclination: 440 miles/98.2 degrees

At the Astrotech payload processing facility on north Vandenberg Air
Force Base, pre-launch testing of Glory continues. The "limited
performance tests" and a solar array illumination test have been
completed. Fueling of the spacecraft with its attitude control
propellant is planned for early next week.

At the launch pad, Stage 0 of the Taurus XL rocket was hoisted atop
the elevated launch stand on Jan. 17. Stages 1, 2 and 3 are in
Orbital Sciences Hangar 1555 on north Vandenberg and are scheduled to
be moved to the launch pad next week on Jan. 25.

Data from the Glory mission will allow scientists to better understand
the Earth's energy budget. An accurate description of the Earth's
energy budget is important in order to anticipate future changes to
our climate. Shifts in the global climate and the associated weather
patterns impact human life by altering landscapes and changing the
availability of natural resources.

The Aerosol Polarimetry Sensor instrument will measure aerosols
(human-caused and naturally occurring) to determine their relative
influence on the global climate.

The Total Irradiance Monitor instrument will monitor the Sun to
understand short-term solar mechanisms causing energy budget changes
and will contribute to the vital long-term solar record.

Jacques :-)

Offline TheFallen

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #48 on: 01/22/2011 01:33 am »
Illumination tests were recently conducted on Glory's solar arrays

http://mediaarchive.ksc.nasa.gov/search.cfm?cat=198

Offline TheFallen

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #49 on: 01/22/2011 11:58 pm »
The spacecraft is now loaded with hydrazine, according to a status update on Glory's Facebook page (you need to have an account and be friends with Glory...if you want to view the update yourself)

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1368706679

Offline jacqmans

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #50 on: 01/27/2011 06:42 pm »
STATUS REPORT: ELV-012711

EXPENDABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE STATUS REPORT

Spacecraft: Glory
Launch Vehicle: Taurus XL 3110
Launch Site:  Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.
Launch Date:  Feb. 23, 2011
Launch Time: 2:09:43 a.m. PST
Altitude/Inclination: 440 miles/98.2 degrees

At the Astrotech payload processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force
Base, prelaunch processing of the Glory spacecraft continues. Fueling
of the spacecraft with its attitude control propellant is complete.
On Jan. 26, the Glory spacecraft was mated to the payload cone, which
is a vehicle interface payload attach fitting, in preparation for
encapsulation into the payload fairing at Astrotech on Feb. 3-4.

Taurus XL Stages 1, 2 and 3 were moved from Orbital Sciences Hangar
1555 to the launch pad on Jan. 25. Glory will be attached to the
Taurus XL third stage on Feb. 6 soon after the spacecraft arrives at
the launch pad. The fully integrated "stack" will later be hoisted
atop the Taurus XL Stage 0, currently planned to occur on Feb. 15.

The ELaNa CubeSat secondary payloads arrived at Vandenberg on Jan. 24.
Within their self-contained deployer, they will be taken to the pad
on Feb. 6 and integrated with the Taurus XL.

Data from the Glory mission will allow scientists to better understand
the Earth's energy budget. An accurate description of the Earth's
energy budget is important in order to anticipate future changes to
our climate. Shifts in the global climate and the associated weather
patterns impact human life by altering landscapes and changing the
availability of natural resources.

The Aerosol Polarimetry Sensor instrument will measure aerosols
(human-caused and naturally occurring) to determine their relative
influence on the global climate.

The Total Irradiance Monitor instrument will monitor the Sun to
understand short-term solar mechanisms causing energy budget changes
and will contribute to the vital long-term solar record.

Project management for Glory is the responsibility of NASA's Goddard
Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. The launch management for the
mission is the responsibility of NASA's Launch Services Program at
the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Orbital Sciences Corporation of
Dulles, Va., is the launch service provider to Kennedy of the
four-stage Taurus XL rocket and is also builder of the Glory
satellite for Goddard.

Jacques :-)

Offline jacqmans

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #51 on: 02/03/2011 08:33 pm »
STATUS REPORT: ELV-020311

EXPENDABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE STATUS REPORT

Spacecraft: Glory
Launch Vehicle: Taurus XL 3110
Launch Site:  Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.
Launch Date:  Feb. 23, 2011
Launch Time: 2:09:43 a.m. PST
Altitude/Inclination: 440 miles/98.2 degrees

At the Astrotech payload processing facility on north Vandenberg Air
Force Base, prelaunch processing of the Glory spacecraft continues.
Activities to encapsulate the satellite into the payload fairing are
under way. Soon after Glory's arrival at the launch pad on Feb. 5, it
will be attached horizontally to the Taurus XL third stage. The fully
integrated "upper stack" consisting of the encapsulated Glory
spacecraft with stages 1, 2 and 3 will later be hoisted atop the
Taurus XL Stage 0, currently planned for Feb. 15.

The ELaNa CubeSat secondary payloads within their self-contained
deployer also will be taken to the pad this weekend and integrated
with the Taurus XL.

Flight Simulation No. 3 involving the upper stack is planned for Feb.
8. The Combined Systems Test on Feb. 17 will test the entire launch
vehicle once the upper stack has been integrated with Stage 0.

Data from the Glory mission will allow scientists to better understand
how the sun and tiny atmospheric particles called aerosols affect
Earth's climate. Both aerosols and solar energy influence the
planet's energy budget -- the amount of energy entering and exiting
Earth's atmosphere. An accurate measurement of these impacts is
important in order to anticipate future changes to our climate and
how they may affect human life.

Project management for Glory is the responsibility of NASA's Goddard
Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. The launch management for the
mission is the responsibility of NASA's Launch Services Program at
the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Orbital Sciences Corporation of Dulles, Va., is the launch service
provider to Kennedy of the four-stage Taurus XL rocket and is also
builder of the Glory satellite for Goddard.

Jacques :-)

Offline TheFallen

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #52 on: 02/04/2011 01:10 am »
Glory is now encapsulated in the Taurus XL fairing

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/profile.php?id=1368706679

Offline TheFallen

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #53 on: 02/05/2011 05:42 pm »
More photos of Glory being encapsulated and then being moved to the launch pad

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/album.php?fbid=1790325042429&id=1368706679&aid=106047

Offline Ronsmytheiii

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #54 on: 02/08/2011 01:09 pm »
Quote
-- At Space Launch Complex 576-E at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, workers have moved NASA's Glory spacecraft into position where it will be joined with the Taurus XL rocket's third stage already delivered to a temporary processing tent near the pad. The Orbital Sciences Corp. Taurus XL rocket will carry Glory into low Earth orbit. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 5:09 a.m. EST Feb. 23. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin, VAFB

http://mediaarchive.ksc.nasa.gov/search.cfm?cat=4

Offline jacqmans

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #55 on: 02/10/2011 06:39 pm »
MEDIA ADVISORY: M11-027

GLORY CLIMATE SATELLITE READY FOR CALIFORNIA LAUNCH ON FEB. 23

WASHINGTON -- NASA's Glory mission is scheduled to launch Wednesday,
Feb. 23, from Space Launch Complex 576-E at Vandenberg Air Force Base
in California. Liftoff is targeted for 5:09 a.m. EST (2:09 a.m. PST)
in the middle of a 48-second launch window.

Data from the Glory mission will allow scientists to better understand
how the sun and tiny atmospheric particles called aerosols affect
Earth's climate. Both aerosols and solar energy influence the
planet's energy budget - the amount of energy entering and exiting
Earth's atmosphere. An accurate measurement of these impacts is
important to anticipate future changes to our climate.

The first of NASA's Educational Launch of Nanosatellite, or ELaNa,
missions also will be launched on the Taurus XL rocket. These
auxiliary payloads are three small satellites called CubeSats, each
designed and created by university and college students.

NASA Television will carry prelaunch media briefings on the Glory and
ELaNa missions on Monday, Feb. 21 starting at 4 p.m. EST (1 p.m. PST)
from Vandenberg. Reporters who cannot attend the briefings can ask
questions from NASA field centers.

On Feb. 23, NASA TV coverage of the countdown will begin at 3:30 a.m.
EST (12:30 a.m. PST). Liftoff is targeted for 5:09:43 a.m. EST
(2:09:43 a.m. PST). Spacecraft separation from the Taurus occurs 13
minutes after launch. The briefings and launch coverage also will be
streamed online at:

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv


Launch coverage of Glory countdown activities will appear on NASA's
launch blog starting at 3:30 a.m. EST (12:30 a.m. PST). Real-time
updates of countdown milestones as well as streaming video clips
highlighting launch preparations and liftoff will be available at:

http://www.nasa.gov/glory


The launch news center at the NASA Vandenberg Resident Office will be
staffed beginning Feb. 15. To speak with a NASA Public Affairs
Officer, call 805-605-3051. A recorded status report will also be
available starting at that time by dialing 805-734-2693.

NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., manages the
Glory project. Mission launch management is the responsibility of
NASA's Launch Services Program at the Kennedy Space Center in
Florida. Orbital Sciences Corp. of Dulles, Va., which built the Glory
satellite, also is the launch service provider of the four-stage
Taurus XL rocket.

For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov

Jacques :-)

Offline jacqmans

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #56 on: 02/11/2011 07:21 am »
STATUS REPORT: ELV-021011

EXPENDABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE STATUS REPORT

Spacecraft: Glory
Launch Vehicle: Taurus XL 3110
Launch Site:  Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.
Launch Pad:  SLC 576E
Launch Date:  Feb. 23, 2011
Launch Time: 2:09:43 a.m. PST
Altitude/Inclination: 440 miles/98.2 degrees

On Feb. 5, the encapsulated Glory spacecraft was transported from the
Astrotech payload processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base to
the launch pad and electrically mated horizontally with the Taurus XL
third stage. On Feb. 6, the ELaNa CubeSat secondary payloads within
their self-contained deployer also were taken to the pad and
integrated with the Taurus XL rocket.

Flight Simulation No. 3 involving the upper stack occurred as planned
Feb. 8. The fully integrated "upper stack," consisting of the
encapsulated Glory spacecraft with Stages 1, 2 and 3, will be hoisted
atop the Taurus XL Stage 0 on Feb. 15. The Combined Systems Test on
Feb. 17 will test the entire launch vehicle once the upper stack has
been integrated with Stage 0.

Data from the Glory mission will allow scientists to better understand
how the sun and tiny atmospheric particles called aerosols affect
Earth's climate. Both aerosols and solar energy influence the
planet's energy budget -- the amount of energy entering and exiting
Earth's atmosphere. An accurate measurement of these impacts is
important in order to anticipate future changes to our climate and
how they may affect human life.

Project management for Glory is the responsibility of NASA's Goddard
Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. The launch management for the
mission is the responsibility of NASA's Launch Services Program at
the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Orbital Sciences Corp. of
Dulles, Va., is the launch service provider to Kennedy of the
four-stage Taurus XL rocket and is also builder of the Glory
satellite for Goddard.

Jacques :-)

Offline Shams

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #57 on: 02/11/2011 03:45 pm »
Can you provide the technical details of Glory spacecraft including Mass?
« Last Edit: 02/11/2011 04:28 pm by Shams »

Offline bolun

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #58 on: 02/11/2011 08:24 pm »
Can you provide the technical details of Glory spacecraft including Mass?

Offline Kim Keller

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Re: Taurus XL, GLORY - February 23, 2011 - VAFB
« Reply #59 on: 02/15/2011 05:46 pm »
If anyone's interested, the upper stack (s1,2,3 & P/L) of the vehicle is being lifted and integrated to S0. There's video on http://countdown.ksc.nasa.gov/elv/. Hopefully, the weather will hold off for the rest of the day so we can get this done.

So far, everything's stuck pretty much to schedule. Fingers crossed! I wanna go home next week!

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