CST-100 Starliner (Orbital Flight Test) - Atlas V N22 (AV-080) - CCAFS SLC-41 - 20.12.2019, 11:36 UTC.

[кукушка]

На американской замене «Союза» улетит новая «Клепальщица Рози»
Перспективный космический корабль Boeing Starliner, созданный в США на замену российским космическим кораблям «Союз МС», в своем первом полете к МКС, намеченном на декабрь, будет переносить манекен Rosie the Rocketeer («Рози-ракетчица»), являющийся новым аналогом Rosie the Riveter («Клепальщица Рози»), сообщает Space.com.
https://lenta.ru/news/2019/12/14/starliner/

Американский аналог «Союза» доставит в космос новую «Клепальщицу Рози»
https://news.ru/cosmos/amerikanskij-analog-soyuza-dostavit-v-kosmos-novuyu-klepalshicu-rozi/

[sas]

Получается, если когда Старлайнер прилетит на МКС, там будет такая толпа кораблей, какой никогда не было? Прям в Кейптаунском порту...

[tnt22]

 Tory Bruno‏ @torybruno 3 ч. назад

SRB fairing installed. Starliner hatch closed. #OFT is near

[tnt22]

https://www.ulalaunch.com/explore/blog-detail/blog/2019/12/15/dual-engine-centaur-returns-to-service-for-starliner-launches

Dual Engine Centaur returns to service for Starliner launches
Dec 15, 2019, 07:06 AM

The Atlas V rocket will fly a special trajectory to space when launching Boeing's CST-100 Starliner capsules, a flight path that requires the Centaur upper stage to use two engines instead of one.



The Dual Engine Centaur (DEC) was standard aboard Atlas rockets for decades, but the performance generated by Atlas V rendered two engines on the upper stage unnecessary for the past 15 years.
 
For Starliner missions, however, the double-engine configuration returns so that the rocket can fly a flatter trajectory and ensure the capsule can execute an abort at any time to bring the astronauts back to Earth safely if a problem occurs.
 
Centaur is the most efficient upper stage flying today. It is constructed using pressure-stabilized stainless steel tanks to hold cryogenic liquid hydrogen fuel and liquid oxygen. The tank walls are 0.02 inches thick, thinner than a dime, which is one of the key features that makes it the highest-performing upper stage in the world.
 
The venerable stage was developed at the dawn of the space age to harness the power of liquid hydrogen and create a pathway for larger spacecraft to visit the Moon and every planet across the solar system.
 
First launched in 1962, it has flown 251 times and enabled scientific exploration from the Sun to Pluto and everywhere in between. U.S. national security and telecommunications around the world also have benefited from Centaur.
 
To date, there have been 166 Dual Engine Centaurs used by both Atlas and Titan rockets and 85 Single Engine Centaurs, exclusively on Atlas.
 
All Centaurs prior to 2000 were dual-engine configurations, and the most recent was in 2004 on the final launch of the Atlas IIAS vehicle. Atlas rockets have used DECs 143 times from 1962 to 2004 and Titan flew 23 DECs from 1974 to 2003.
 
Single Engine Centaur was introduced in 2000 on the Atlas IIIA rocket and that carried over to Atlas V for all 80 of its launches thus far.



OFT marks the return to Dual Engine Centaur, providing double the thrust from twin Aerojet Rocketdyne RL10A-4-2 engines. That 44,600 pounds of thrust allows Centaur to execute a customized flight profile for Starliner that features just a single burn and a limited acceleration rate to manage the G-force experienced by the astronauts aboard.
 
The heritage has carried forward through current designs which allowed for minimal new hardware required to build the Dual Engine Centaur configuration for Starliner missions.
 
Following the first stage of flight, the Atlas V common core booster will jettison from the Centaur four minutes and 35 seconds after liftoff. The Centaur ignites both engines 10 seconds later at an altitude of approximately 60 nautical miles.
 
The Centaur burn will last just over seven minutes to deliver Starliner at the desired injection point for separation at T+plus 15 minutes into a 98 by 39-nautical mile suborbital trajectory, inclined 51.6 degrees relative to the equator.
 
Employing the same operational procedure as the space shuttle that also launched on suborbital trajectories, the Starliner capsule will perform an orbital-maneuvering engine firing about 15 minutes after separation from Centaur to reach a stable orbit. The capsule then begins the chase to catch the International Space Station for docking.
 
Meanwhile, the Centaur will passivate onboard tanks and re-enter over the Indian Ocean to complete its mission southwest of Australia an hour after liftoff.

[7th Guest]

   стелс-пихота?

[tnt22]

 Boeing Space‏ @BoeingSpace 9 мин. назад

#Starliner is carrying 500 seeds in its cargo from five different species of tree that mirror those flown around the Moon on #Apollo 14 and were planted by the U.S. Forest Service. When these seeds return from @Space_Station, they will be planted across the U.S.

[tnt22]

NOTMARs (три зоны в сев. Атлантике, одна - в ю.-в. ч. Индийского океана)

NAVAREA IV 1081/19

WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC.
FLORIDA.
1. HAZARDOUS OPERATIONS, ROCKET LAUNCHING
201126Z TO 201216Z DEC,
ALTERNATE 211103Z TO 211153Z DEC AND 231015Z TO 231105Z DEC
IN AREAS BOUND BY:
    A. 28-37-21N 080-36-24W, 29-07-00N 080-01-00W,
        29-03-00N 079-56-00W, 28-37-00N 080-20-00W,
        28-35-00N 080-24-00W, 28-31-47N 080-33-40W.
    B. 29-15-00N 079-58-00W, 29-42-00N 079-33-00W,
        29-34-00N 079-23-00W, 29-09-00N 079-47-00W.
    C. 39-25-00N 066-51-00W, 40-33-00N 064-59-00W,
        40-25-00N 064-52-00W, 39-18-00N 066-44-00W.
2. CANCEL THIS MSG 231205Z DEC 19.//

Authority: EASTERN RANGE 102106Z DEC 19.

Date: 150831Z DEC 19
Cancel: 23120500 Dec 19


HYDROPAC 4152/19

INDIAN OCEAN.
DNC 03.
1. HAZARDOUS OPERATIONS, SPACE DEBRIS
201221Z TO 201309Z DEC,
ALTERNATE 211158Z TO 211246Z DEC AND  231110Z TO 231158Z DEC
IN AREA BOUND BY
    24-10S 078-39E, 21-03S 082-56E,
    29-58S 092-56E, 37-55S 104-44E,
    43-24S 116-27E, 47-54S 131-16E,
    49-37S 146-12E, 49-50S 153-23E,
    54-47S 153-23E, 55-06S 148-33E,
    54-08S 133-51E, 50-48S 117-57E,
    44-28S 102-29E, 37-03S 091-45E,
    29-39S 083-03E.
2. CANCEL THIS MSG 231258Z DEC 19.//

Authority: EASTERN RANGE 101906Z DEC 19.

Date: 150819Z DEC 19
Cancel: 23125800 Dec 19

[tnt22]

 Dr Marco Langbroek‏ @Marco_Langbroek 22 ч. назад

Hazard areas and approximate ground track of the 20 December Boeing CST-100 Starliner orbital flight test:

[tnt22]

 ULA‏ @ulalaunch 2 мин. назад

The first weather forecast for #AtlasV and #Starliner was issued by the @45thSpaceWing this morning. The outlook for Friday's 6:36amEST (1136 UTC) launch from Cape Canaveral is 70 % GO.  See more details in our live launch blog: http://bit.ly/av_oft

[tnt22]

 Jeff Foust‏ @jeff_foust 7 мин. назад

In an email update, ULA says there's a 70% chance of acceptable weather for Friday's Starliner launch at 6:36 am EST (1136 GMT). The cumulus cloud rule and ground winds are the primary concerns. Weather slips to 60 % go if the launch is delayed to Saturday.

[tnt22]

 Tory Bruno‏ @torybruno 10 мин. назад

#OFT is coming

[tnt22]

 Boeing Space‏ @BoeingSpace 10 мин. назад

#RosietheRocketeer is our anthropometric test device. She's an ode to the women who blazed a trail in aerospace and human spaceflight. Rosie has hundreds of sensors that will measure what it will be like for astronauts inside #Starliner.

More: https://www.floridatoday.com/story/tech/science/space/2019/11/21/boeing-names-test-dummy-fly-aboard-first-starliner-flight-after-iconic-rosie-riveter/4230233002/ ...

[tnt22]

 Tory Bruno‏ @torybruno 26 мин. назад

System Certification Review completed. #OFT

[tnt22]

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/boeing-and-nasa-approach-milestone-orbital-flight-test

Dec. 16, 2019

Boeing and NASA Approach Milestone Orbital Flight Test


A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, topped by the Boeing CST-100 Starliner spacecraft, stands on Space Launch Complex 41 at Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on Dec. 4, 2019. Boeing's Orbital Flight Test will launch on Dec. 20, 2019.
Credits: Boeing

By Jim Cawley
NASA's Kennedy Space Center

When Boeing's Orbital Flight Test (OFT) launches on Dec. 20, 2019, it will be a major step toward returning human spaceflight capability to the U.S.

The uncrewed mission for NASA's Commercial Crew Program will rendezvous and dock Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft with the International Space Station and return to Earth on Dec. 28. Starliner will launch atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 (SLC-41) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.


The uncrewed Orbital Flight Test mission for NASA's Commercial Crew Program will rendezvous and dock Boeing's Starliner spacecraft with the International Space Station and return to Earth on Dec. 28.
Credits: Boeing

"This test flight will give us valuable data about Starliner's performance in the actual environment through each phase of flight and demonstrate its capability to transport crew to the space station and bring them home safely," said Trip Healey, NASA's mission manager for OFT. "Being on the cusp of this huge moment in history is really exciting."

Data from the mission will validate spacecraft system performance and will move Starliner farther down the path toward its first flight with astronauts aboard — Boeing's Crew Flight Test (CFT).

NASA astronauts Michael Fincke and Nicole Mann and Boeing astronaut Chris Ferguson will be onboard Starliner for CFT. All three were on hand when the spacecraft for this flight test rolled out of Boeing's Commercial Crew and Cargo Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Nov. 21, making the roughly six-mile trek on a transport vehicle to SLC-41 to be mated atop the Atlas V rocket.

The crew also recently participated in an integrated day of launch test for OFT and witnessed Boeing's Pad Abort Test. These tests are part of verifying each of Starliner's systems will function not only separately, but in concert, to protect astronauts on the Crew Flight Test and future missions by carrying them safely away from the launch pad in the unlikely event of an emergency prior to liftoff. For this test without crew members, the abort system will not be active.

"We're looking forward to the day when we're launching people on a regular basis," said Fincke. "As graduates of military test pilot schools, we are really excited to see how Starliner's going to behave; we know it's going to be awesome, and we're going to get all kinds of really great test data from it."

The uncrewed flight test is the culmination of years of ingenuity and perseverance throughout the design, build, and test phases of the program.

"The most inspiring thing to note through this partnership is how the Boeing, ULA and NASA teams continue to work together to resolve challenges," Healey said. "There is definitely a team spirit, or esprit de corps, that has helped bring us to this point."

Last Updated: Dec. 16, 2019
Editor: James Cawley

[Виктор Левашов]

По Московскому времени - во сколько старт будет?

[tnt22]

Виктор Левашов написал:
По Московскому времени - во сколько старт будет?

Если уточнений не последует, пока 14:36:00 ДМВ 20.12.2019

[Виктор Левашов]

tnt22 написал:
Если уточнений не последует, пока 14:36:00 ДМВ 20.12.2019

Так перенесли...
Благодарю Вас, Тнт22.
А то я сижу, жду...

[tnt22]

Dec 17 16:35
Weather now 80% GO

The launch weather forecast for Friday's Atlas V Starliner launch has improved to an 80 percent chance of favorable conditions, according to the latest update from the 45th Weather Squadron at Cape Canaveral.

"From Thursday into Saturday, the pressure gradient remains tight, with strong high pressure over the Mid-Atlantic and low pressure over Cuba. Winds at the Cape are expected to gust near 22 knots, shifting from the north-northeast on Thu to east on Friday into Saturday," Launch Weather Officer Jessica Williams said today.

"With sustained onshore flow through Saturday, cumulus clouds are expected to be moving onshore with a slight chance of a brief shower. Any shower in the vicinity has the potential to produce a temporary wind gust near 30 knots with the moderate gradient already in place.

"Therefore, the primary concerns for launch day are the Cumulus Cloud Rule and User Ground Winds."

The operations forecast for the 6:36 a.m. EST (1136 UTC) liftoff time includes scattered clouds, good visibility, easterly winds 18 peaking to 22 knots and a temperature near 63 degrees F.

"Similar conditions are expected Saturday with slightly higher moisture and wind speeds, so the chance for showers and the POV is increased," Williams said.

The odds of acceptable weather on Saturday morning are 70 percent with the primary concerns also being cumulus clouds and ground winds.

[tnt22]

https://blogs.nasa.gov/commercialcrew/2019/12/17/televised-prelaunch-briefing-set-for-boeings-orbital-flight-test/

Televised Prelaunch Briefing Set for Boeing's Orbital Flight Test

Linda Herridge
Posted Dec 17, 2019 at 10:07 am


Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft sits atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Space Launch Complex 41 in Florida on Dec. 5, 2019, for the program's first-ever Integrated Day of Launch Test the following day. Photo credit: NASA/Frank Michaux

NASA will hold a prelaunch briefing on Tuesday, Dec. 17, no earlier than 2 p.m. EST, following the completion of the Launch Readiness Review for Boeing's uncrewed Orbital Flight Test for NASA's Commercial Crew Program. Briefing participants are:

[/li]
• Kathy Lueders, manager, NASA Commercial Crew Program
  
• Joel Montalbano, deputy manager, International Space Station Program
  
• John Mulholland, vice president and program manager, Boeing Commercial Crew Program
  
• John Elbon, chief operating officer, United Launch Alliance
  
• Pat Forrester, astronaut office chief, Johnson Space Center
  
• Will Ulrich, launch weather officer, 45th Weather Squadron
  

Watch the briefing live on NASA TV. More details about the mission and NASA's Commercial Crew Program can be found in the online press kit and by following the @commercial_crew on Twitter and commercial crew on Facebook.

View all of the prelaunch briefings and events at https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-boeing-oft-briefings-events-and-broadcasts.

Meteorologists with the U.S. Air Force's 45th Weather Squadron predict an 80 percent chance of favorable weather for launch on Friday morning, with the possibility of cumulus clouds posing the main concern.

[tnt22]

https://www.ulalaunch.com/explore/blog-detail/blog/2019/12/17/the-blue-team-will-prep-starliner-crew-cabin-for-flight

The Blue Team will prep Starliner crew cabin for flight
Dec 17, 2019, 11:07 AM

Eight specialists fr om United Launch Alliance and The Boeing Co., known as the Blue Team, will rehearse their job of loading astronauts into Starliner spacecraft during the Atlas V rocket's countdown to the Orbital Flight Test launch.



The Blue Team has the unique responsibility of preparing the crew module, assisting the astronauts into their seats and then closing the hatch for flight.
 
They will be the last people that the astronauts see until arriving at the International Space Station -- the destination for Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft in NASA's Commercial Crew Program.
 
But the uncrewed Orbital Flight Test offers the Blue Team a "real world" dress rehearsal of their launch day tasks at the Space Launch Complex-41 pad ahead of upcoming crewed missions.
 
"We want to fully simulate the operations needed to prepare the spacecraft for crew. This is an Orbital Flight Test in every sense of the words, so this is our best opportunity to refine our operations and ensure everything works as planned and on the timeline needed to ensure we get everything ready for launch," said Dane Drefke, ULA's mechanical operations lead engineer who serves as the Blue Team Leader (BTL).
 
Drefke is in charge of the Blue Team's activities and has an obligation to ensure everyone's safety.
 
About six hours before liftoff, cryogenic liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen will begin flowing into the Atlas V rocket's stages for launch. It is a hazardous operation and the area surrounding the pad will be cleared of all personnel.
 
Once fueling is completed and the rocket placed into a quiescent state, the Blue Team will drive up to the pad gates in two vehicles. Drefke leads them into the complex and parks at the base of the Crew Access Tower (CAT), the 200-foot-tall gantry built to support Atlas V launches of Starliner.
 
The team takes the elevator up to Level 12, the deck leading to the Starliner hatchway. It's now time for the Blue Team to go to work.
 
ULA's three representatives on the Blue Team begin activities by walking across the 48-foot-long retractable catwalk extending from the CAT to the White Room. Their duties include verifying the White Room is safe for personnel to enter, establishing access to the capsule, deploying the environmental seal between the pad and spacecraft and setting up access platforms.
 
The ULA members then switch places with five Boeing technicians waiting in the wings on the CAT, led by Boeing's Pad Team Leader Melanie Weber.
 
"Even though we're from two different companies, we really are one team," Weber said.  "We have to be totally in sync and have each others' backs to make sure we're successful on launch day."
 
"The Boeing team will open the capsule hatch and prepare the spacecraft for the crew to arrive. There's a myriad of checks and power up operations they do. The prepare each seat for the arrival of the crew members," said Drefke.
 
"The Blue Team Leader will direct all operations from outside the White Room on Level 12. The BTL has to ensure we don't exceed the personnel limits in the White Room, and that the crew members are ready to enter."



Once operations are completed -- for future missions, that means the crew and cargo have been loaded in the vehicle -- the Boeing technicians close the hatch and clear the White Room. The ULA members then configure the White Room for launch by retracting access platforms and deflating the environmental seal around the capsule to prepare the swing arm for rotation to the launch position.
 
"We then perform one last check of the tower and then clear the pad for launch," said Drefke.
 
The team departs the pad at Launch-minus 35 minutes.
 
The access arm will be hydraulically swung away from the spacecraft 10 minutes before launch. The process will take about two minutes to reach the stowed position against the CAT.
 
If the need arises, the arm can be redeployed in less than 15 seconds by dropping counterweights.
 
The Blue Team will be stationed to the north of the pad at liftoff.
 
"We stand by there in the event we need to return to the pad quickly to attend to the crew," said Drefke.
 
Unlike the space shuttle days that included astronauts on the Orbiter Closeout Crew to assist with flight crew ingress activities, the Blue Team will remain at 8 members in its current composition.
 
"Because returning to the pad in inherently dangerous with a fueled vehicle, we lim it the number of people exposed to that hazard to the absolute minimum required. The NASA personnel from the crew office will fully train all of the Blue Team members in what is required to assist the crew, and we will perform those duties," Drefke explained.
 
Because safety is paramount, SLC-41 has an Emergency Escape System available for the Blue Team and astronuts to evacuate the launch pad using zip lines to rapidly travel 1,300 feet away from the tower to awaiting armored vehicles.