As it happens, the last lander scheduled to launch could be the first to touch down on the Moon. Intuitive Machine’s Nova-C lander is targeting liftoff between Jan. 12-16 and is set to land at the Moon’s South Pole (80.297°S, 1.2613°E) on either Jan. 19 or 21.A spokesperson for Intuitive Machines said the landing opportunity for both days is in the afternoon in EST.Trent Martin, the Vice President of Lunar Access at Intuitive Machines, told Spaceflight Now in an Oct. 27 interview that they have instantaneous launch opportunities each day during their January window. He said because their lander needs to be fueled at the launch pad, crews will perform a wet dress rehearsal several days ahead of launch.
Quote from: Jeff Foust tweet, Dec 14Slides from a presentation from NASA's Joel Kearns show a Jan. 19 or 21 landing for the IM-1 lunar lander assuming a launch Jan. 12-16, and a Jan. 25 landing for Peregrine if it launches Dec. 24-26. And that Peregrine launch will be in the middle of the night at the Cape…
Slides from a presentation from NASA's Joel Kearns show a Jan. 19 or 21 landing for the IM-1 lunar lander assuming a launch Jan. 12-16, and a Jan. 25 landing for Peregrine if it launches Dec. 24-26. And that Peregrine launch will be in the middle of the night at the Cape…
A Falcon 9 will launch the Intuitive Machines IM-1 Nova-C lunar lander to the moon from pad 39A on January 12 around 11 p.m. EST.
Quote from: Ken the Bin on 12/13/2023 10:12 pmhttps://arstechnica.com/space/2023/12/technical-problems-ground-spacex-launch-of-us-military-spaceplane/ [Dec 13]Quote from: Stephen ClarkThis is expected to push back the launch until at least late December, perhaps longer. SpaceX and Space Force officials have not divulged details about the problems causing the delay.Also, from the same article:QuoteSpaceX called off a launch attempt Monday night at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida to resolve a problem with a ground system. A senior Space Force official told Ars on Wednesday that additional issues will cause an additional delay in the launch.“We’re working through a couple of technical glitches with our SpaceX team that just are going to take a little bit more time to work through," said Col. James Horne, deputy director of the Space Force's Assured Access to Space directorate. "We haven’t nailed down a specific launch date yet, but we’re going to have to roll back into the HIF (Horizontal Integration Facility) and work through some things on the rocket.”Horne, a senior leader on the Space Force team overseeing military launches like this one, said the ground equipment problem that prevented liftoff Monday night could be fixed as soon as Wednesday. But it will take longer to resolve other issues he declined to specify. "We found some things that we need to run some analysis on, so that’s what’s driving the delay," he said.
https://arstechnica.com/space/2023/12/technical-problems-ground-spacex-launch-of-us-military-spaceplane/ [Dec 13]Quote from: Stephen ClarkThis is expected to push back the launch until at least late December, perhaps longer. SpaceX and Space Force officials have not divulged details about the problems causing the delay.
This is expected to push back the launch until at least late December, perhaps longer. SpaceX and Space Force officials have not divulged details about the problems causing the delay.
SpaceX called off a launch attempt Monday night at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida to resolve a problem with a ground system. A senior Space Force official told Ars on Wednesday that additional issues will cause an additional delay in the launch.“We’re working through a couple of technical glitches with our SpaceX team that just are going to take a little bit more time to work through," said Col. James Horne, deputy director of the Space Force's Assured Access to Space directorate. "We haven’t nailed down a specific launch date yet, but we’re going to have to roll back into the HIF (Horizontal Integration Facility) and work through some things on the rocket.”Horne, a senior leader on the Space Force team overseeing military launches like this one, said the ground equipment problem that prevented liftoff Monday night could be fixed as soon as Wednesday. But it will take longer to resolve other issues he declined to specify. "We found some things that we need to run some analysis on, so that’s what’s driving the delay," he said.
It usually takes a couple of weeks to reconfigure LC-39A between Falcon Heavy and Falcon 9 launches. The Falcon Heavy is significantly more powerful, with three Falcon 9 first-stage boosters connected together to haul more massive payloads into orbit.
February Falcon 9 • IM-1Launch time: TBD
Intuitive Machines IM-1 Lunar Mission Launch UpdateIntuitive Machines, Inc. (Nasdaq: LUNR, LUNRW) (“Intuitive Machines”) (“Company”), a leading space exploration, infrastructure, and services company, announced in coordination with SpaceX, launch of the Company’s IM-1 lunar mission is now targeted for a multi-day launch window that opens no earlier than mid-February 2024. The updated window comes after unfavorable weather conditions resulted in shifts in the SpaceX launch manifest.The mid-February launch window is the next available opportunity to launch IM-1 given the monthly lunar blackout period; the IM-1 mission Nova-C lunar lander is targeted to land near the south pole of the Moon, requiring specific lighting conditions that are only available for a handful of days each month.The Company’s IM-1 mission Nova-C lunar lander remains ready. As previously announced, Intuitive Machines delivered its IM-1 mission Nova-C lunar lander to Cape Canaveral, Florida, earlier this month. Since arriving in Florida, the IM-1 lunar lander has completed major system tests, verification, and certification milestones and is prepared for integration with SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket.The Intuitive Machines IM-1 mission will be the Company’s first attempted lunar landing as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (“CLPS”) initiative, a key part of NASA’s Artemis lunar exploration efforts. The science and technology payloads sent to the Moon’s surface as part of CLPS intend to lay the foundation for human missions and a sustainable human presence on the lunar surface.
Quote from: Steven Pietrobon on 12/23/2023 04:30 amT-4 minutes. Strongback is retracting.this fairing looks odd is it im1 fairing before mission for testing. Im1 propellant I don't know do anyone knows if throw fairing it this fairing maybe.
T-4 minutes. Strongback is retracting.
A Falcon 9 will launch the Intuitive Machines IM-1 Nova-C lunar lander from pad 39A on February 10.
Ben Cooper (Updated December 29th)Targeting February 10thQuoteA Falcon 9 will launch the Intuitive Machines IM-1 Nova-C lunar lander from pad 39A on February 10.https://www.launchphotography.com/Launch_Viewing_Guide.html
Quote from: GewoonLukas_ on 12/31/2023 05:28 amBen Cooper (Updated December 29th)Targeting February 10thQuoteA Falcon 9 will launch the Intuitive Machines IM-1 Nova-C lunar lander from pad 39A on February 10.https://www.launchphotography.com/Launch_Viewing_Guide.htmlThis translates to a landing date of ~ February 17, six days before Peregrine. IM-1 is in the lead again for the first American Moon landing since Apollo 17.
Looks like we have ourselves a bit of a moon race, folks. In a statement, Intuitive Machines just said that its "mid-February launch window results in lunar landing dates intended for February 22, 2024, or before." So it would land a day before before Astrobotic's Peregrine.
[...]Landing scheduled for No Later Then February 22nd:QuoteLooks like we have ourselves a bit of a moon race, folks. In a statement, Intuitive Machines just said that its "mid-February launch window results in lunar landing dates intended for February 22, 2024, or before." So it would land a day before before Astrobotic's Peregrine.twitter.com/wapodavenport/status/1743391354510561518
Is there a publicly available source explicitly stating the mission requires a wet dress rehearsal? And is that "wet" for the lander as well? Is there an anticipated date for that?
Also SFN Intuitive Machines targets launch to the Moon in mid-January, October 27, by Will Robinson-SmithQuoteTrent Martin, the Vice President of Lunar Access at Intuitive Machines:The special accommodations are because the IM-1 lander uses a propellant mix of liquid oxygen and liquid methane and needs to be fueled at the launch pad in the run-up to launch.But to do that, they need to have access to the payload, which is where the crew and cargo access tower comes into play. Another such tower is in the works at SLC-40, but it won’t be fully operational in time for this mission.“We actually do a wet dress rehearsal several days before the launch. So we will actually do a full fuel of our vehicle to ensure we have the timeline down," Martin said. “We want to fuel as late as possible. SpaceX has been very accommodating and they’re providing us a service that gives us liquid oxygen, liquid methane. They’ll fill up until the very last minute, so that we’re as full as possible and we have the highest chance of success at landing on the Moon.”
Trent Martin, the Vice President of Lunar Access at Intuitive Machines:The special accommodations are because the IM-1 lander uses a propellant mix of liquid oxygen and liquid methane and needs to be fueled at the launch pad in the run-up to launch.But to do that, they need to have access to the payload, which is where the crew and cargo access tower comes into play. Another such tower is in the works at SLC-40, but it won’t be fully operational in time for this mission.“We actually do a wet dress rehearsal several days before the launch. So we will actually do a full fuel of our vehicle to ensure we have the timeline down," Martin said. “We want to fuel as late as possible. SpaceX has been very accommodating and they’re providing us a service that gives us liquid oxygen, liquid methane. They’ll fill up until the very last minute, so that we’re as full as possible and we have the highest chance of success at landing on the Moon.”
It appears that SpaceX may be testing the TE at 39A with the new connections that should allow @Int_Machines's Nova-C lander to be loaded with propellants while on the pad. The lander uses cryogenic oxygen and methane fluids for its propulsion system.nsf.live/spacecoast
The the location of this vent is higher up on the strongback than the usual vent we see for the Stage 2 liquid oxygen connection. It would seem reasonable to assume that, since this is higher up, this is for cryogenic connections to the Falcon 9 fairing.
Such connections will be in use during the countdown for that mission as SpaceX plans to fill up the lander during the countdown while on the pad. It's gonna be interesting to see how it all pans out in the end but really great to see SpaceX is already testing this.
I hope this works. This would help dispel a lot of unease about cryo fuel for larger landers, too.
Quote from: Robotbeat on 01/22/2024 06:48 amI hope this works. This would help dispel a lot of unease about cryo fuel for larger landers, too.Me too; fingers crossed! How do pressure-fed methalox stages scale? (See attached Nova-C sizing.) Can designers simply multiply all those values by a single constant value, or does e.g. pressurized helium not work that way?
