SpaceX Falcon 9 : Merah Putih (Telkom 4) : August 7, 2018 - DISCUSSION

[Comga]

Busy August ahead: Launch hazard area issued for upcoming #SpaceX Telkom-4 (Merah Putih) launch from CCAFS. In effect from 2315 ET on 8/3 until 0315 ET on 8/4 (0315 to 0715 UTC). ASDS landing.

NASA+ULA, meanwhile, still targeting Parker Solar Probe for 8/6 [now 11/6] on Delta IV Heavy.

https://twitter.com/emrekelly/status/1021832566209433605

Should be 8/11 for PSP, not 11/6.

August 11, to be more clear, as posted here in the PSP thread.

[ChrisC]

I believe this is an example of what ChrisC is talking about - I'm sure someone will let me know if I'm wrong  - these teleports are quite common in Los Angeles...  This one is across the street from Sony Picture Studios.

Eeeyup.  I have stories about that teleport.  It's a tiny urban location.  Here's another one a bit more luxuriously spread out, about 100 miles east of that Culver City site.  If you go to 3D view on that Google Maps display, you'll see that it actually has a berm built around it, to further shield it from stray RF radiation (and the occasional bullet) from "civilization."  That's in addition to being nestled in a small valley.

Note the one antenna at the left edge of the site, pointing to the left.  It's pointing nearly due west, hitting a satellite over the Pacific that can see both Asia and North America, and thus serves as the transoceanic link.  Traffic will typically be going in both directions through that link, e.g. news+sports raw feeds heading east, and news+sports networks heading west.  The remaining antennas, pointing south-ish or southeast-ish, are all aimed at North American cable birds, which are just rebroadcasting those TV uplinks I talked about.  And aaaalllll of it in C-band.

For those annoyed by this continuing C-band chit chat, I'm sure it will soon be time to split this thread into updates + discussion, especially since this mission is now the next batter in the box

[AlphaAdhito]

Excuse me for asking, but is there any news about fairing recovery on the next flight (the Merah Putih launch)?

[Jcc]

Excuse me for asking, but is there any news about fairing recovery on the next flight (the Merah Putih launch)?

They don't have a fairing catcher on the east coast, but they will probably do a soft landing and fish them out of the water.

[mazen hesham]

This Launch will reuse the first block 5 B1046 According to Teslarati so not a new booster as previously thought.
https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-first-falcon-9-block-5-reuse-drone-ship-turnaround-record/

[ZachS09]

This Launch will reuse the first block 5 B1046 According to Teslarati so not a new booster as previously thought.
https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-first-falcon-9-block-5-reuse-drone-ship-turnaround-record/

If Merah Putih launches on time, the turnaround time between this mission and Bangabandhu 1 will be 84 days, 9 hours, and 5 minutes.

The record currently stands with Core B1045: 71 days, 10 hours, and 51 minutes.

[envy887]

This Launch will reuse the first block 5 B1046 According to Teslarati so not a new booster as previously thought.
https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-first-falcon-9-block-5-reuse-drone-ship-turnaround-record/

If Merah Putih launches on time, the turnaround time between this mission and Bangabandhu 1 will be 84 days, 9 hours, and 5 minutes.

The record currently stands with Core B1045: 71 days, 10 hours, and 51 minutes.

The article is referring to drone ship turnaround, not booster turnaround.

[RocketLover0119]

Booster for this mission will be B1046, fastest turnaround of a droneship, and the 2nd fastest turnaround of a booster!!!

https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-first-falcon-9-block-5-reuse-drone-ship-turnaround-record/amp/?__twitter_impression=true

"More important than the schedule, perhaps, is the fact that it would appear that SpaceX intends to reuse the first Block 5 booster (B1046) for this particular launch. "

"Meanwhile, an unmistakeable Block 5 booster – with black interstage and octaweb coverings – was spotted being transported through Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) earlier this week, just after Falcon 9 B1047 launched (July 21 EDT) and freed up space for another booster inside the horizontal integration facility (HIF) at Pad 40. Given that only one Block 5 booster has been recovered on the East Coast and that B1047 was still out at sea earlier this week, the sooty booster traveling through CCAFS thus has to have been B1046, and it was making a beeline for LC-40."

Pic below I've never seen before of B1046 in transit to refurbishment.

[ChrisGebhardt]

Booster for this mission will be B1046...

That would be nice, but isn’t B1049 here at the Cape, too?  Wondering how seeing it going toward SLc-40 means it is being used for Telkom-4 in just over a week?

[Orbiter]

That would be nice, but isn’t B1049 here at the Cape, too?  Wondering how seeing it going toward SLc-40 means it is being used for Telkom-4 in just over a week?

The article says a sooty B5 booster was spotted traveling through CCAFS. If so, then the only booster that could be is 1046.

[ChrisGebhardt]

That would be nice, but isn’t B1049 here at the Cape, too?  Wondering how seeing it going toward SLc-40 means it is being used for Telkom-4 in just over a week?

The article says a sooty B5 booster was spotted traveling through CCAFS. If so, then the only booster that could be is 1046.

I understand that.  But that’s not what I was saying.  I was saying that the article says that because B1046 is going to the HIF, it must be for Telkom-4.  But B1049 is also at the Cape.  So I’m wondering why it isn’t for Telkom?  Getting legs onto B-1046 and hauling it to pad for static fire in time seems mighty tight.

[oiorionsbelt]

  And I think more than one booster can fit in the HIF at LC-40.

From the article.

To lay out the foundation of this claim, it’s known that SpaceX’s CCAFS Pad 40 integration facilities are only capable of fitting one booster and the strongback (transporter/erector/launcher, TEL) at a time, evidenced both by sourced comments and views inside the hangar.

[cppetrie]

They have also reportedly done pretty extensive inspection of 1046, more perhaps than even a refurbished block 4 might get, as part of testing how the block 5 modifications performed.

[vaporcobra]

They have also reportedly done pretty extensive inspection of 1046, more perhaps than even a refurbished block 4 might get, as part of testing how the block 5 modifications performed.

Yep. I was fairly shocked to see B1046 rolling into 40's HIF, I was very much under the assumption that B1049 would do the honors for Telkom. But I suppose it isn't unreasonable that Telsat requested new boosters for both launches, or at least didn't want to be the first Block 5 reuse.

Either way, we'll find out on Tues/Wed.

[Nehkara]

Took a look at a few pictures of SLC-40's hangar.  Doesn't look like you could fit more than one core in there.  I understand why Teslarati is making this assumption.

https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=30700.msg1019166#msg1019166

[Michael Baylor]

I understand that.  But that’s not what I was saying.  I was saying that the article says that because B1046 is going to the HIF, it must be for Telkom-4.  But B1049 is also at the Cape.  So I’m wondering why it isn’t for Telkom?  Getting legs onto B-1046 and hauling it to pad for static fire in time seems mighty tight.

The one thing that could explain this is that Telstar 18V was originally scheduled to launch before Merah Putih. Therefore, they may have shipped B1049 to the Cape under the impression that it would be needed for a launch in early August.

[vaporcobra]

Took a look at a few pictures of SLC-40's hangar.  Doesn't look like you could fit more than one core in there.  I understand why Teslarati is making this assumption.

https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=30700.msg1019166#msg1019166

I totally understand the skepticism, Chris. I'm skeptical as well. But I saw B1046 heading towards the LC40 HIF, and there really is no other indoor location at complex to store it for two weeks. Would be a very weird time and place to move a booster for a launch two weeks after the next.

[glanmor05]

If correct, am I right in saying that this flight wouldn't count towards the "7 flights without a significant design change" for 1st crew? It has the old pressure vessels yeah?

[Tomness]

If correct, am I right in saying that this flight wouldn't count towards the "7 flights without a significant design change" for 1st crew? It has the old pressure vessels yeah?

Correct, DM-1 will have the first locked design and start the 7 flights including in- fight abort.

[glanmor05]

On another thread, I was told that the last 2 flights of Block5 had the new COPVs and therefore had begun the count of 7 flights? I.e count doesn’t start with DM1.