Author Topic: SpaceX Falcon 9 : PAZ & Microsat 2a/2b : SLC-4E : Feb 22, 2018 : DISCUSSION  (Read 213053 times)

Offline Ronsmytheiii

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Discussion Thread for PAZ mission.

NSF Threads for PAZ : Discussion / Updates / L2 Coverage January-February

NSF Threads for Starlink Constellation:  SpaceX FCC filing for a 4425 satellite constellation providing Internet service / SpaceX - now a satellite vendor?

NSF Articles for PAZ :

Feb 21, 2018 on reused Falcon 9 (booster 1038.2) from Vandenberg.  Launch time reported as 1417 UTC, 0617 PST.  First stage may be expended.  PAZ is 1400kg and going to a 514-km polar orbit.  SpaceX is expected to launch their demonstration satellites, Microsat 2a & 2b (a little under 400kg each, plus dispenser?), for the internet constellation on this flight.



Quote
Hisdesat, the Spanish government satellite services company, has signed an agreement with U.S. company SpaceX to launch the Earth Observation Radar satellite, PAZ, on board a Falcon 9 rocket. The launch is targeted to take place during the last quarter of 2017, from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. The numerous successes of Falcon 9 have been a driving factor for the election of Hisdesat to launch on board this rocket, which already has the confidence of other great companies.

http://www.hisdesat.es/eng/noticias_notas.php

Edit to use original press release



Other SpaceX resources on NASASpaceflight:
   SpaceX News Articles (Recent)
   SpaceX News Articles from 2006 (Including numerous exclusive Elon interviews)
   SpaceX Dragon Articles
   SpaceX Missions Section (with Launch Manifest and info on past and future missions)

   L2 SpaceX Section
« Last Edit: 02/22/2018 12:55 pm by Galactic Penguin SST »

Offline wannamoonbase

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Launching of the Spanish PAZ satellite will be carried out with the help of the Falcon 9 rocket from SpaceX company instead of the Russian Dnepr rocket, as planned initially, according to the website of the customer - the Spanish state-owned company Hisdesat.

"Hisdesat signed an agreement with the US company SpaceX to launch the PAZ Earth observation radar on board the Falcon 9 rocket," the report said.

The launch is scheduled for the last quarter of 2017 at the cosmodrome on the territory of the air base Vandenberg in California.

https://www.gazeta.ru/science/news/2017/03/07/n_9768869.shtml

There's going to be a Cosmodrome at VAFB now, cool!
Starship, Vulcan and Ariane 6 have all reached orbit.  New Glenn, well we are waiting!

Offline WmThomas

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The Spanish text doesn't call it a cosmodrome. The English page has a funky translation, I guess.

Offline WmThomas

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How did Hisdesat get a launch lined up for 2017, given SpaceX's backlog?

Is this going to rideshare with Formosat, maybe?

Offline Ragmar

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Peter Selding reported that PAZ will have a co-passenger, but doesn't know who yet:

https://twitter.com/pbdes/status/839102717591158784
Quote
Hisdesat: We dont yet know the ID of our co-passenger for late-2017 @SpaceX launch of our Paz radar sat into polar LEO from VAFB.#SATShow

« Last Edit: 12/08/2017 10:54 pm by gongora »

Offline Jcc

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How did Hisdesat get a launch lined up for 2017, given SpaceX's backlog?

Is this going to rideshare with Formosat, maybe?

Can we speculate that it will use a reflown S1?
« Last Edit: 03/08/2017 01:34 am by Jcc »

Offline FutureSpaceTourist

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Hisdesat attempting to recover deposit for the cancelled Dnepr launch:

http://spacenews.com/hisdesat-demanding-refund-as-it-dumps-dnepr-for-falcon-9/


Offline wannamoonbase

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How did Hisdesat get a launch lined up for 2017, given SpaceX's backlog?

Is this going to rideshare with Formosat, maybe?

Can we speculate that it will use a reflown S1?

With Shotwell stating 5 more flights with reused boosters this year I wouldn't bet against it.
Starship, Vulcan and Ariane 6 have all reached orbit.  New Glenn, well we are waiting!

Offline AncientU

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How did Hisdesat get a launch lined up for 2017, given SpaceX's backlog?

Is this going to rideshare with Formosat, maybe?

Can we speculate that it will use a reflown S1?

With Shotwell stating 5 more flights with reused boosters this year I wouldn't bet against it.

If true, second stages are not/will not be the pacing item -- otherwise, this payload would have to wait in queue for its second stage.  Launch pad slots seem to be pacing today.  After the next handful of flights, or at least by LC-40 return to service, they drop back to first stages being limiting.  Reflights can then become fillers between new cores.
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Offline gongora

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Speculation about whether the flight could reuse a booster is really not appropriate in every mission thread that gets created.  If we get any actual indication that the flight will reuse a booster then you can discuss it here.  Otherwise, maybe stick to a general reuse thread.

Offline DaveJes1979

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This is a very likely candidate to be the first RTLS (Return to Launch Site) for F9 at Vandenberg.  With only 1400 kg to sun synchronous orbit, it seems it would have the propellant to do so.
« Last Edit: 08/31/2017 10:09 pm by DaveJes1979 »

Offline gongora

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[SpaceNews] Spire, 40 cubesats in orbit, competing more directly in space-based ship-tracking market
Quote
exactEarth has 65 hosted payloads launching on Iridium Next satellites, spokesperson Nicole Schill told SpaceNews Aug. 31...The company has one more first-generation payload awaiting launch on the long-delayed PAZ satellite that investor Hisdesat of Spain recently shifted from Kosmotras to SpaceX. Schill said PAZ is expected to launch in December 2017;

I don't see how all of these launches set for December 2017 are actually going to launch in December 2017.  Who knows, maybe SpaceX can pull it off.  It would be nice if this launched in December, Vandenberg is gonna get busy next year.

Offline AncientU

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Speculation about whether the flight could reuse a booster is really not appropriate in every mission thread that gets created.  If we get any actual indication that the flight will reuse a booster then you can discuss it here.  Otherwise, maybe stick to a general reuse thread.

When the award announcement to launch interval is this short, and the well-established* queue is jumped, I think the reality is that a reuse core is indicated.  Not random speculation, unless there is a better explanation...

* I'm assuming that queue published in this section is well-sourced and reasonably reliable.
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Offline gongora

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Speculation about whether the flight could reuse a booster is really not appropriate in every mission thread that gets created.  If we get any actual indication that the flight will reuse a booster then you can discuss it here.  Otherwise, maybe stick to a general reuse thread.

When the award announcement to launch interval is this short, and the well-established* queue is jumped, I think the reality is that a reuse core is indicated.  Not random speculation, unless there is a better explanation...

* I'm assuming that queue published in this section is well-sourced and reasonably reliable.

When I wrote that 5 1/2 months ago people were asking that question in every mission thread created, no matter how far in the future it was.

Offline rockets4life97

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I think this has a good shot of launching in December because there isn't another flight out of Vandy scheduled for that month. The 5th Iridium launch is almost certainly January 2018 now with the slip of the 3rd Iridium to October (if that wasn't clear earlier).

Offline AncientU

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Speculation about whether the flight could reuse a booster is really not appropriate in every mission thread that gets created.  If we get any actual indication that the flight will reuse a booster then you can discuss it here.  Otherwise, maybe stick to a general reuse thread.

When the award announcement to launch interval is this short, and the well-established* queue is jumped, I think the reality is that a reuse core is indicated.  Not random speculation, unless there is a better explanation...

* I'm assuming that queue published in this section is well-sourced and reasonably reliable.

When I wrote that 5 1/2 months ago people were asking that question in every mission thread created, no matter how far in the future it was.

Sorry, missed the date line.
"If we shared everything [we are working on] people would think we are insane!"
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Offline IanThePineapple

This is a very likely candidate to be the first RTLS (Return to Launch Site) for F9 at Vandenberg.  With only 1400 kg to sun synchronous orbit, it seems it would have the propellant to do so.

Formosat was about 450kg to SSO and it didn't even do a boostback ASDS landing. Unless they just decided "Why not, let's just do a crazy entry burn with no boostback", this will likely not be RTLS.

Offline cppetrie

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This is a very likely candidate to be the first RTLS (Return to Launch Site) for F9 at Vandenberg.  With only 1400 kg to sun synchronous orbit, it seems it would have the propellant to do so.

Formosat was about 450kg to SSO and it didn't even do a boostback ASDS landing. Unless they just decided "Why not, let's just do a crazy entry burn with no boostback", this will likely not be RTLS.
RTLS was not done because they have not been approved to use the LZ. Somebody with more knowledge will have to say whether it was possible had LZ use been approved, but either way it wasn't going to happen.

Offline DaveJes1979

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See the final 5 paragraphs of this article:  https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2017/08/spacex-static-fire-formosat-5-falcon-9-asds-landing/

That means that, unless the landing facilities are still incomplete, they could theoretically do RTLS for any launch that has the excess performance to do so.

Offline cppetrie

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See the final 5 paragraphs of this article:  https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2017/08/spacex-static-fire-formosat-5-falcon-9-asds-landing/

That means that, unless the landing facilities are still incomplete, they could theoretically do RTLS for any launch that has the excess performance to do so.
Based on the brief glimpses of the landing pad from various Formosat-5 launch videos and pictures, it appeared to not yet be painted indicating it is not yet ready to go.

Edit: typo
« Last Edit: 09/01/2017 10:02 pm by cppetrie »

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