LIVE: Delta IV Heavy: NRO L-49 - Jan 20, 2011

[Salo]

Live thread for NRO L-49 launch on the ULA Delta IV-H from Vandenberg SLC-6

Updated on launch day:

The launch of the ULA Delta IV Heavy with a National Reconnaissance Office payload is scheduled for Jan. 20, 1:08 p.m. PST from Space Launch Complex-6, Vandenberg AFB, Calif.  The weather forecast is still 90 percent acceptable for launch.

[butters]

The last of the venerable KH-11/12 "Crystal" birds? The mission patch says "better the devil you know" in Latin and has a phoenix rising from the ashes theme. It's amazing we're still launching spy satellites with 1970s heritage!

[Chris Bergin]

ULA:

The launch of the ULA Delta IV Heavy with a National Reconnaissance Office payload is now rescheduled for Jan. 20, 1:08 p.m. PST from Space Launch Complex-6, Vandenberg AFB, Calif.

This will be the largest rocket ever launched from the West Coast of the U.S.  Keep in mind the Delta IV Heavy is America’s largest liquid fueled rocket with nearly 2 million pounds of thrust at launch at liftoff, but it is not America’s most powerful rocket.  That would be the Space Shuttle with nearly 7 million pounds of thrust.  But it is the largest physically standing approximately 235 feet tall.   

[kevin-rf]

I assume, LVOS on 1-29-2010 means that the vehicle arrived on site on that date.

So it took close to a year to go from LVOS to launch. Interesting.

btw. This line in the .pdf says much...

Flag was painted by Lockheed-Martin when the MAS was constructed for the shuttle
program. Each star on the flag is 6’ tall. Lockheed-Martin paid the Italian painter in
advance for the work. He took the money and flew back to Italy without performing any
work. The employees working on the shuttle program took up a collection among
themselves and painted the flag

[Art LeBrun]

If I recall correctly AC-141 arrived at SLC-3E in September 1997 and flew in December 1999. Not sure if the complete vehicle was there all that time.

[Jim]

LVOS - Launch Vehicle on Stand.

Part of the standardization process within ULA, was previously VOS and BOS

[Downix]

Wish I could go watch it, but I don't think Vandenburg lets you as close as Kennedy.  (I'm not too far away, but it's on a school day)

[Antares]

If I recall correctly AC-141 arrived at SLC-3E in September 1997 and flew in December 1999. Not sure if the complete vehicle was there all that time.

There was some fleet issue or spacecraft issue with that one, concluding with the RL10 on Delta 269.  Processing didn't take that long.

[Art LeBrun]

If I recall correctly AC-141 arrived at SLC-3E in September 1997 and flew in December 1999. Not sure if the complete vehicle was there all that time.

There was some fleet issue or spacecraft issue with that one, concluding with the RL10 on Delta 269.  Processing didn't take that long.

Thanks for that information. It was also a revamped launch complex. Hard to believe an Atlas-Centaur was there among the low hills of VAFB after 37 years of flight.

[Steve_the_Deev]

If I recall correctly AC-141 arrived at SLC-3E in September 1997 and flew in December 1999. Not sure if the complete vehicle was there all that time.

I watched AC-141 Launch on Dec18, 1999. I was in Lompoc after work (I worked @ SLC-6) and saw the Atlas 2AS lifting off. It was one heck of a launch as it cleared the hills near South Base.  I had a vested interest in the rocket since I was the Engineer in charge of both the Equipment Module and the Payload Adapter.  The EOS PA was a one off design, a custom built high tech design specifically for the EOS program, that my friends means it cost big bucks! The PA was the first ever LockMart PA to use Al-Li in its construction. We (Lockheed Martin) built both in Harlingen, TX at the Lockheed Martin Facility where I worked from 1996-1998. VAFB did have an issue with the Payload Adapter though. After we shipped VAFB the Payload Adapter and during a test lift at VAFB's launch pad SLC-3E the GSE attach bolts galled in the Flt half's attach points.  The Payload Adapter's lift points were drilled through the Al-Li Longerons (each at 120 deg intervals) around the PA.  When it was determined that the GSE bolts had galled it was a VERY big deal.  Their very first assumption pointed to Harlingen! Since my techs in Harlingen had built and drilled those Longeron attach points using tooling I had built for the job it was the obvious first choice.  Since I was the engineer who oversaw the build of that PA and the drilling of those attach points the Harlingen build process and build paper was investigated.  Strangely I had left Harlingen for a job at SLC-6 at VAFB in 1998.  So by shear chance I was now at VAFB (1999) when the incident occurred.  They asked me some questions about the build we had done back in 1998 and after they couldn't pin the issue on anything we did they had to look at how they (SLC-3E VAFB) processed and lifted the EOS-Payload Adapter. Yep, it was nice to be exonerated! The problem turned out to be a common one.  Due to the extremely tight tolerances between the GSE and Flt hardware the GSE bolts galled up after the high loads were applied during the torquing and PA lift operation.  By not using a fine coat of lubricant on the bolt's interface with the Flt half holes the bolts galled inside the flt Longerons. It was a huge deal at the time because it was  NASA's premiere satellite the EOS Terra, which was to be mated to the Payload Adapter.  The EOS satellite was a massively large satellite and massively expensive!  It is still in its operational Polar Orbit doing excellent Earth Observation activity.

[Art LeBrun]

Thanks for the insights to that one issue, Steve. Do you remember how T-0 was moved to within 10 seconds of the end of the launch window because of high winds? Beautiful launch.

[edkyle99]

This will be the largest rocket ever launched from the West Coast of the U.S. 

Largest as in tallest, perhaps, or widest, or heaviest payload, but far from the heaviest launch vehicle.  Titan 4B weighed 940-ish tonnes, well more than Delta 4 Heavy's 730-ish tonnes.  Titan 4 produced a lot more thrust (1.7 times more at 1,542 tonnes thrust versus Delta's 900 tonnes thrust), made the ground shake more, and made a lot more noise than Delta 4 Heavy.   

 - Ed Kyle

[TitanFan]

Does anybody familiar with Vandenberg AFB know of a line-of-sight viewing spot to SLC-6?  I've watched numerous launches from SLC-3E, and SLC-4 (E and W), but I have yet to find a spot where I can physically see a SLC-6 liftoff.  I'm really looking forward to this launch...should be a doozy.  Also, anybody getting any "subliminal messages" off of that NRO mission patch aside from what's been noted above?

[EE Scott]

This will be the largest rocket ever launched from the West Coast of the U.S. 

Largest as in tallest, perhaps, or widest, or heaviest payload, but far from the heaviest launch vehicle.  Titan 4B weighed 940-ish tonnes, well more than Delta 4 Heavy's 730-ish tonnes.  Titan 4 produced a lot more thrust (1.7 times more at 1,542 tonnes thrust versus Delta's 900 tonnes thrust), made the ground shake more, and made a lot more noise than Delta 4 Heavy.   

 - Ed Kyle

Thanks for that information, it helps to provide perspective.

[hartspace]

Does anybody familiar with Vandenberg AFB know of a line-of-sight viewing spot to SLC-6?  I've watched numerous launches from SLC-3E, and SLC-4 (E and W), but I have yet to find a spot where I can physically see a SLC-6 liftoff.  I'm really looking forward to this launch...should be a doozy.  Also, anybody getting any "subliminal messages" off of that NRO mission patch aside from what's been noted above?

Due to the hills on south Vandenberg, there are no direct line-of-sight viewing points off base.  In fact, you would have to go south of SLC-4 on the base to even see SLC-6 and that is in the launch danger area.  So there really isn't going to be a direct view from anywhere on the ground.  You may want to head to Harris Grade, so you will see it as soon as it clears the hills.  It should be spectacular in any case.

Doug

[Antares]

The 30th Space Wing suggests Skyscreen Road

http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=34.767634,-120.528753&spn=0.009818,0.024054&z=16

[TitanFan]

Due to the hills on south Vandenberg, there are no direct line-of-sight viewing points off base.  In fact, you would have to go south of SLC-4 on the base to even see SLC-6 and that is in the launch danger area.  So there really isn't going to be a direct view from anywhere on the ground.  You may want to head to Harris Grade, so you will see it as soon as it clears the hills.  It should be spectacular in any case.

Doug

Yeah, that's what I was afraid of.  I've been out to South Vandenberg a few times, and knew that SLC-6 was tucked in the hills pretty good out there, but I figured maybe there was a spot I missed.

The 30th Space Wing suggests Skyscreen Road

http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=34.767634,-120.528753&spn=0.009818,0.024054&z=16

Yeah, that's the off base viewing sites, which is on the opposite side of the base from SLC-6.  Skyscreen road is actually the viewing spot for SLC-2 (Delta) and 576E (Taurus) launches, which are on North Vandenberg.  I'm surprised they didn't find a better off-base viewing area.  I found out yesterday, that according to the 30th SW Facebook page, Surf beach is going to be open (surprising to me...never known Surf to be open for a launch from SLC-6), so that's where I'm thinking about heading.

Thanks for the help, guys

[agman25]

How do the Delta IV's get to VAFB ? Shipped through the Panama Canal?

[marsavian]

http://www.spaceflightnow.com/delta/d352/padmods/

The rocket was constructed at ULA's factory in Decatur, Alabama. In mid-August 2009, the three booster cores and upper stage were loaded into ocean-going Delta Mariner vessel for a month-long, 4,000+ mile trip through the Panama Canal and around to Vandenberg.

After arriving late-September 2009 at the harbor once envisioned for receiving the space shuttle fuel tank barge, the first West Coast Heavy rolled onto California soil and moved up the road to SLC-6 over a three-day period.

[HIPAR]

Arrival of the 'Heavy':

http://spaceflightnow.com/delta/d352/arrival/


Evidently, It embarks from Decatur Al and navigates a circuitous route on the Tennessee River to the Mississippi River.  It finally emerges at the Gulf of Mexico.

I'll be happy to book passage on the next delivery cruise.

---  CHAS