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#40 by Skyrocket on 24 Feb, 2014 22:07
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So it actually uses the "standard" Minotaur fairing, and not the same fairing as the Taurus.
Which was in turn taken from Taurus-2210 and -3210. So it is in fact the large Taurus fairing - not the small, which caused so much trouble. -
#41 by kevin-rf on 24 Feb, 2014 22:34
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So is it not so much renaming a rocket as a
hostile takeovermerger of the Taurus and Minotaur teams?
Might we see similar Pegasus synergy in the future? -
#42 by LouScheffer on 25 Feb, 2014 00:18
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Well, for the first failure only one thing had to go wrong. For the second failure, another thing had to go wrong - the failure review board had to fail to find the right problem (or perhaps specify the wrong set of fixes).There were multiple things that had to go wrong with the Taurus fairing for it not to work.
No, just one thing. -
#43 by ineedalife999 on 25 Feb, 2014 02:42
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I wonder if the renaming of Taurus to Minotaur C (assuming this is what is happening) might be avionics-based. Minotaur was equipped from the outset with an upgraded version of Orbital's older Pegasus and Taurus avionics system. This included the inclusion of Orbital's Modular Avionics Control Hardware (MACH) system and the use of high-data rate telemetry. MACH was originally developed, as I understand it, for OSP and Target Launch Vehicle. Perhaps a Taurus equipped with updated Minotaur avionics suite is now going to be called "Minotaur C".
Just a guess.
- Ed Kyle
After OCO and Glory, Taurus was actually out of flight computers; the original manufacture had moved on. One of those two crapped out in testing and had to be sent back for repair prior to OCO, which made a few people pretty nervous. So I guess instead of keeping the Taurus name and paying to upgrade they are just doing the upgrade to MACH and giving the vehicle a clean start. -
#44 by Kim Keller on 25 Feb, 2014 13:07
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Well, for the first failure only one thing had to go wrong. For the second failure, another thing had to go wrong - the failure review board had to fail to find the right problem (or perhaps specify the wrong set of fixes).There were multiple things that had to go wrong with the Taurus fairing for it not to work.
No, just one thing.
Unfortunately, no. The same problem bit twice. The wrong "problem" was fixed after T8/OCO. -
#45 by Kim Keller on 25 Feb, 2014 13:09
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After OCO and Glory, Taurus was actually out of flight computers; the original manufacture had moved on. One of those two crapped out in testing and had to be sent back for repair prior to OCO, which made a few people pretty nervous. So I guess instead of keeping the Taurus name and paying to upgrade they are just doing the upgrade to MACH and giving the vehicle a clean start.
Orbital's very sensible plan is to use the MACH avionics family throughout the product line. The architecture is very flexible. I'm currently evaluating such an upgrade to another of Orbital's vehicles. -
#46 by Kim Keller on 25 Feb, 2014 13:21
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So is it not so much renaming a rocket as a
hostile takeovermerger of the Taurus and Minotaur teams?
Might we see similar Pegasus synergy in the future?
The engineering teams for Minotaur & Pegasus/Taurus will probably remain separate. The Vandenberg operations have always been integrated across the product line. -
#47 by Kim Keller on 25 Feb, 2014 13:25
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So it actually uses the "standard" Minotaur fairing, and not the same fairing as the Taurus.
Which was in turn taken from Taurus-2210 and -3210. So it is in fact the large Taurus fairing - not the small, which caused so much trouble.
....although the frangible joints used on the two sizes were very similar and supplied by the same vendor. Orbital now has an aerospace qualified vendor. -
#48 by baldusi on 25 Feb, 2014 14:33
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The engineering teams for Minotaur & Pegasus/Taurus will probably remain separate. The Vandenberg operations have always been integrated across the product line.
Antares is a third team? Pegasus II a fourth? I'm trying to understand why Taurus is being folded into Minotaur-C, but the other solids aren't. -
#49 by Kim Keller on 25 Feb, 2014 15:08
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The engineering teams for Minotaur & Pegasus/Taurus will probably remain separate. The Vandenberg operations have always been integrated across the product line.
Antares is a third team? Pegasus II a fourth? I'm trying to understand why Taurus is being folded into Minotaur-C, but the other solids aren't.
Antares is a separate team. I know nothing about "Pegasus II" (?). Taurus is not being folded into Minotaur-C. For all intents and purposes, Minotaur-C is simply a new name for Taurus XL. This is all about re-branding, not reorganization. Yes, there will be some changes to details of the rocket, but the engineering team will continue as it has in the past, handling Pegasus and Taurus vehicle engineering. -
#50 by Robotbeat on 25 Feb, 2014 15:30
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Pegasus II is the informal name for the Stratolaunch launch vehicle.
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#51 by Kim Keller on 25 Feb, 2014 17:03
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Pegasus II is the informal name for the Stratolaunch launch vehicle.
Oh yeah, forgot...thanks. It's easy getting old, tough being old! -
#52 by gongora on 29 Aug, 2017 20:40
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Spaceflight Now shows this launch scheduled for October 17 at 1437 PDT/2137 GMT.
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#53 by FutureSpaceTourist on 05 Sep, 2017 13:22
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Peter B. de Selding @pbdes 9m9 minutes ago
Six @planetlabs 100-kg SkySat high-res observation sats built by @sslmda arrive Vandenberg AFB for Oct launch on @OrbitalATK Minotaur.
https://twitter.com/pbdes/status/905056160671309824
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#54 by Kabloona on 05 Sep, 2017 21:40
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Wasn't a material uncontrolled secondary property that failed to propagate the fissure?
If that's meant to indicate that the frangible joint was not manufactured by a subcontractor to aerospace requirements, then you're right.
I realize the above quotes are a few years old, but some new info has recently come to light on the subject of those frangible joint failures. NASA is reportedly investigating the supplier, who allegedly falsified materials test results.
https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=43508.0
So not only was the joint not "manufactured to aerospace requirements," the supplier intentionally falsified test results. Hope someone goes to jail for that. -
#55 by myersd97 on 06 Sep, 2017 01:58
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Unless I am mistaken, the VV07 launch (Vega launch in Sep 2016) put Skysats 4-7 into orbit. The title should be updated to reflect Skysat-8/9/10/11/12/13.
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#56 by Targeteer on 06 Sep, 2017 02:50
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http://sslmda.com/html/pressreleases/2017-09-05-High-Resolution-Smallsats-Built-by-SSL-Arrive-at-Vandenberg-AFB-for-Launch.php
High Resolution Smallsats Built by SSL Arrive at Vandenberg AFB for Launch
Six Planet satellites — California owned, California built, California launched
PALO ALTO, Calif. – September 5, 2017 — In a first for the industry, six satellites, built in California, to be launched in California, for a California company have arrived at the Vandenberg Air Force Base, where they are scheduled to be launched on a Minotaur rocket in October. Space Systems Loral (SSL), a leading provider of innovative satellites and spacecraft systems, built the six high-resolution small satellites for Planet for its SkySat Earth observation constellation – a fleet Planet gained through the acquisition of the Terra Bella business from Google, Inc. in April 2017. The satellites will double Planet’s high resolution imaging capabilities and help deliver information to users about our physical world that impacts decision making.
“Small satellites and Earth observation satellites are a growing focus for SSL,” said Dario Zamarian, group president of SSL. “SSL is known for working very collaboratively with our customers and it has been a great pleasure for our team to work together with Planet. For these satellites we have taken a fresh approach to manufacturing, learning from our GEO experience but also looking for new and more efficient processes that in turn also inform our large satellite manufacturing.”
The satellites, called SkySat 8 through 13, are each about 60 x 60 x 95 centimeters, weigh about 100 kilograms, and capture sub-meter color imagery and up to 90-second clips of HD video with 30 frames per second. Working together with the seven SkySats already on orbit, the satellites will dramatically increase Planet’s high resolution imaging capabilities, enabling multiple imaging passes in a single day. These capabilities, combined with Planet’s over 170 Dove satellites and their advanced software analytics platform, make it possible to derive timely insights from any location in the world. The Planet constellation provides a broad range of data, tools, and analytical services that help leaders in business and humanitarian sectors solve complex problems.
“These SkySats double the amount of high resolution data that we can capture and serve to users, and will power insights, inform smart decisions, and most importantly, help make the world a better and safer place,” said Will Marshall, co-founder and chief executive officer of Planet. “The highly experienced team at SSL has been helpful and responsive as we work together to get the satellites prepared for launch.”
SSL has deep experience in building and integrating some of the world’s most powerful and comprehensive solutions for services such as communications, Earth observation, in-orbit servicing, space robotics, and exploration. Four SkySats built by SSL were launched in September 2016, and SSL is currently building an additional eight LEOs for Planet in its SmallSat manufacturing facility in Palo Alto, Calif., where the company takes an innovative approach to satellite design, assembly, and test.
Please visit SSL’s new website which reflects the company’s broad capabilities as a provider of integrated space technologies and systems.
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#57 by Ronsmytheiii on 27 Sep, 2017 18:36
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Planet will be launching 6 SkySats (SkySat 8-13) and 4 Doves (Flock 3m) on an Orbital-ATK Minotaur-C rocket from the SLC-576E launch pad at Vandenberg Air Force Base on October 17, 2017. The target orbit is a Sun Synchronous, 500 km orbit with a 13:30 (1:30pm) crossing time.
https://www.planet.com/pulse/all-in-the-family-planet-to-launch-skysats-and-doves-on-minotaur-c/ -
#58 by Skyrocket on 27 Sep, 2017 20:19
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Planet will be launching 6 SkySats (SkySat 8-13) and 4 Doves (Flock 3m) on an Orbital-ATK Minotaur-C rocket from the SLC-576E launch pad at Vandenberg Air Force Base on October 17, 2017. The target orbit is a Sun Synchronous, 500 km orbit with a 13:30 (1:30pm) crossing time.
https://www.planet.com/pulse/all-in-the-family-planet-to-launch-skysats-and-doves-on-minotaur-c/
I think, that means the COPPER 2, CPOD A/B, MinXSS 2, RANGE A/B cubesats were dropped from the mission. The launch of these university cubesats were sponsored by Google, when Skysat was still a Google company.
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#59 by gongora on 11 Oct, 2017 14:09
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Orbital ATK
@OrbitalATK
Orbital ATK is requesting a later launch date of its #MinotaurC rocket from @30thSpaceWing to accommodate further verification & testing
Source: https://twitter.com/OrbitalATK/status/918102913666441216
Unfortunately, I was unable to find anything more specific.