Author Topic: Orion AA-2 test - SLC-46 - July 2, 2019 (11:00 UTC) - UPDATES (Read 103086 times)

Steven Pietrobon · « **Reply #120 on:** 07/02/2019 11:07 am »

Ejectable data recorders. Has email address and phone number in case someone else finds it.

Steven Pietrobon · « **Reply #121 on:** 07/02/2019 11:08 am »

Going out to pick up data recorders.

catdlr · « **Reply #122 on:** 07/02/2019 11:09 am »

Splash Down indicated in the red circle of the attached photo

Steven Pietrobon · « **Reply #123 on:** 07/02/2019 11:10 am »

Empty pad.

Steven Pietrobon · « **Reply #124 on:** 07/02/2019 11:11 am »

Looks like a perfect test.

Chris Bergin · « **Reply #125 on:** 07/02/2019 11:14 am »

Full test clip:

https://twitter.com/NASASpaceflight/status/1146013730741919744

Steven Pietrobon · « **Reply #126 on:** 07/02/2019 11:18 am »

Some other captures.

Steven Pietrobon · « **Reply #127 on:** 07/02/2019 11:19 am »

Saying Artemis 1 in a little over a years time.

Steven Pietrobon · « **Reply #128 on:** 07/02/2019 11:30 am »

Launch replays and end of webcast.

Congratulations to NASA for the successful test!

Chris Bergin · « **Reply #129 on:** 07/02/2019 12:00 pm »

Many thanks to Steven for the play by play and Chris G being at the launch.

Press Briefing to come, but this appeared to be a successful test by all accounts.

Article https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2019/07/aa-2-orions-in-flight-abort-test-launch/ … - by Philip Sloss

NSF team photos:
https://twitter.com/thejackbeyer/status/1146013688408748032 … - @thejackbeyer
https://twitter.com/TheFavoritist/status/1146020543172358145 … - @TheFavoritist
https://twitter.com/mike_deep/status/1146021197441904642 … - @mike_deep

https://twitter.com/NASASpaceflight/status/1146025567076175872

Rocket Science · « **Reply #130 on:** 07/02/2019 02:28 pm »

jacqmans · « **Reply #131 on:** 07/02/2019 07:52 pm »

uly 02, 2019
RELEASE 19-054

Successful Orion Test Brings NASA Closer to Moon, Mars Missions

NASA successfully demonstrated Tuesday the Orion spacecraft’s launch abort system can outrun a speeding rocket and pull astronauts to safety during an emergency during launch. The test is another milestone in the agency’s preparation for Artemis missions to the Moon that will lead to astronaut missions to Mars.

During the approximately three-minute test, called Ascent Abort-2, a test version of the Orion crew module launched at 7 a.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex 46 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on a modified Peacekeeper missile procured through the U.S. Air Force and built by Northrop Grumman.

The Orion test spacecraft traveled to an altitude of about six miles, at which point it experienced high-stress aerodynamic conditions expected during ascent. The abort sequence triggered and, within milliseconds, the abort motor fired to pull the crew module away from the rocket. Its attitude control motor flipped the capsule end-over-end to properly orient it, and then the jettison motor fired, releasing the crew module for splashdown in the Atlantic Ocean.

A team is collecting the 12 data recorders that were ejected during the test capsule’s descent. Analysis of the information will provide insight into the abort system’s performance.

“We're building the most powerful rocket in the world to send astronauts to the Moon in the Orion spacecraft for Artemis missions,” said Bill Hill, deputy associate administrator for Exploration Systems Development at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “With this exploration system designed to safely carry humans farther into space than ever before, we'll also have an equally powerful launch abort system that will pull the crew away if there is a problem with the rocket during the early portion of ascent.”

The tower-like abort structure consists of two parts: the fairing assembly, which is a shell composed of a lightweight composite material that protects the capsule from the heat, air flow and acoustics of the launch, ascent, and abort environments; and the launch abort tower, which includes the abort motor, attitude control motor, and jettison motor. The system is built specifically for deep space missions and to ride on NASA’s powerful Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.

“Launching into space is one of the most difficult and dangerous parts of going to the Moon,” said Mark Kirasich, Orion program manager at Johnson Space Center in Houston. “This test mimicked some of the most challenging conditions Orion will ever face should an emergency develop during the ascent phase of flight. Today, the team demonstrated our abort capabilities under these demanding conditions and put us one huge step closer to the first Artemis flight carrying people to the Moon.”

NASA was able to accelerate the test schedule and lower costs by simplifying the test spacecraft and eliminating parachutes and related systems. NASA already qualified the parachute system for crewed flights through an extensive series of 17 developmental tests and eight qualification tests completed at the end of 2018.

Engineers are making progress building and testing the Orion spacecraft for Artemis 1, the first uncrewed mission with the SLS rocket – an integrated system traveling thousands of miles beyond the Moon – and for Artemis 2, the first mission with astronauts.

At NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians are preparing to attach the Orion crew and service modules before testing at the agency’s Plum Brook Station in Sandusky, Ohio, later this year. The crew module for Artemis 2 is being outfitted with thousands of elements – from bolts and strain gauges to parachutes and propulsion lines.

The agency recently reached major milestones for the SLS rocket, assembling four of the five parts that make up the massive core stage that will launch Artemis 1 and delivering the four engines that will be integrated into the core stage, along with the engine section, later this summer. When completed, the entire core stage will be the largest rocket stage NASA has built since manufacturing the Saturn V stages for NASA’s Apollo lunar missions in the 1960s.

Orion is part of NASA’s backbone for deep space exploration, along with the SLS and Gateway, that will land the first woman and next man on the Moon by 2024. Through the Artemis program, the next American Moon walkers will depart Earth aboard Orion and begin a new era of exploration.

Learn more about Orion at:

https://www.nasa.gov/orion

For more information about NASA’s Moon to Mars exploration plans, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/moontomars

jacqmans · « **Reply #132 on:** 07/02/2019 07:54 pm »

Release Issued: Jul 2, 2019 (8:47am EDT)

Ensuring Astronaut Safety: Lockheed Martin and NASA Successfully Demonstrate Orion Launch Abort System in Flight Test

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla., July 2, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The critical launch abort system for NASA's Orion spacecraft was put to its hardest test today, and it demonstrated its capability to pull the crew module and future astronauts to safety during a launch if there is an emergency. Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) designed and built the launch abort system for the test and is also the prime contractor building the Orion spacecraft for NASA.

The NASA Orion Ascent Abort-2 test launched from Cape Canaveral today demonstrating the abort system that will keep astronauts safe.

The Ascent Abort-2 flight test is a major test milestone that is enabling the safe passage of astronauts aboard Orion on the Artemis missions to the Moon and then Mars.

During the test this morning from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, the Orion launch abort system, with a mock-up Orion capsule, was launched on a modified Peacekeeper missile. At 31,000 feet, or about six miles up, into the flight, the on-board computers initiated the abort sequence. The launch abort motors, generating 400,000 pounds of thrust, then pulled the Orion capsule away from the rocket which was already traveling nearly 1,000 mph. Using its attitude control motor, the abort system then reoriented itself and jettisoned the Orion capsule using its jettison motor. The total test took less than three minutes.

"The test flight performed perfectly, not to mention it was really exciting to watch," said Mike Hawes, Orion program manager for Lockheed Martin Space. "Hopefully this will be the last time we see this launch abort system ever work, but this test brings confidence that if needed on future Orion missions, it will safely pull the crew module and astronauts away from a life threatening event during launch."

The Orion launch abort system is the highest thrust and acceleration escape system ever developed and is the only system of its kind in the world. It's a major system that makes the Orion exploration-class spaceship the safest spacecraft ever built.

This is the second time the Orion launch abort system has been put to the test. The first flight test was in 2010 simulating a static abort from the launch pad. AA-2 is the final test and demonstration of the full-up launch abort system.

NASA's Orion spacecraft for the uncrewed Artemis 1 mission to the Moon is being developed at the NASA Kennedy Space Center and will soon head into environmental testing—all in preparation for a 2020 launch.

More information about Orion and AA-2:
AA-2 animated video:
AA-2 test footage:
Lockheed Martin Orion page: https://www.lockheedmartin.com/orion
NASA Orion page: https://www.nasa.gov/orion

jacqmans · « **Reply #133 on:** 07/02/2019 07:54 pm »

jacqmans · « **Reply #134 on:** 07/02/2019 07:56 pm »

Northrop Grumman Rockets Support Successful Abort Test of NASA’s Orion Crew Capsule

Successful test puts U.S. one step closer to launching humans from American soil again

July 02, 2019

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – July 2, 2019 – Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) provided major support for the booster and two additional motors for today’s successful test of the NASA Orion crew spacecraft’s abort system. The Ascent Abort-2 (AA-2) test is a key milestone paving the way for human space flight aboard NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS). Orion and SLS are part of NASA’s exploration program to return astronauts to the moon and beyond to Mars.

Northrop Grumman Rockets Support Successful Abort Test of NASAs Orion Crew Capsule
“The flawless operation of spacecraft launch abort safety systems is critical to keeping our astronauts out of harm’s way,” said Blake Larson, president, Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems. “We are proud to play a role in ensuring crew safety and to contribute to this major step in America’s space exploration future.”

The ATB was provided to NASA under a contract with the U.S. Air Force’s Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC), and it is based on Northrop Grumman’s Minotaur family of launch vehicles. The AA-2 mission is led by NASA in partnership with SMC’s Launch Enterprise Systems Directorate (SMC/LE) and Rocket Systems Launch Program (SMC/RSLP), located at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico. SMC/RSLP provided the refurbished legacy SR118 Peacekeeper ICBM first stage motor for the ATB.

AA-2 provided engineers with critical abort test data to help validate computer models of the spacecraft’s Launch Abort System (LAS) performance and system functions. This test and the previous Pad Abort-1 test at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico on May 6, 2010, demonstrate that the LAS is ready to perform effectively during the most stressful missions.

Weighing approximately 16,000 pounds, the LAS can activate within milliseconds to pull the Orion vehicle to safety and position it for a safe landing. The LAS is comprised of three solid propellant rocket motors: the abort motor, an attitude control motor and a jettison motor.

dsmillman · « **Reply #135 on:** 07/02/2019 08:10 pm »

Did anyone get an archive of the post test briefing?

fatdeeman · « **Reply #136 on:** 07/02/2019 11:45 pm »

Footage of the capsule splashdown in this vid:

catdlr · « **Reply #137 on:** 07/03/2019 01:27 am »

Quote from: dsmillman on 07/02/2019 08:10 pm

Did anyone get an archive of the post test briefing?

This is when I miss Ford Mustang (Steven) the most.

Steven Pietrobon · « **Reply #138 on:** 07/03/2019 07:42 am »

Quote from: dsmillman on 07/02/2019 08:10 pm

Did anyone get an archive of the post test briefing?

Spaceflight Now has a recording, but you have to be a member to see it.

https://spaceflightnow.com/2019/07/02/orion-abort-test-post-launch-briefing-members-only/

jacqmans · « **Reply #139 on:** 07/03/2019 09:28 am »

The launch abort system of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Orion capsule descends to the ocean after the Ascent Abort-2 launch on July 2, 2019, at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. The AA-2 mission was to test the abort system that will keep astronauts safe should an anomaly occur upon re-entering the earth from space. (U.S. Air Force photo by James Rainier)