Rocket Launch notification thread

[MartG]

CRS-18 Youtube link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Wa3EDUuP5I

[Eric Mc]

Not too long.

[MartG]

Currently red due to weather - detached anvil clouds and high ground electrical potential giving risk of lightning

[Beati Dogu]

They're fuelling, but will likely abort with 30 seconds to go.

[MartG]

Yup

[Beati Dogu]

OK 29 seconds.

[Eric Mc]

Scrub a dub dub.

[Beati Dogu]

The next Falcon 9 (Amos-17) has been delayed from Saturday 3rd August. They've had to change out a valve and they're going to static fire it again before setting a new launch date.

Pity, as it would have set a new US record for successive flights from the same pad; Coming only 9 days after the CRS-18 ISS resupply mission.

The US record was set by the Gemini program in 1965 - Gemini 7 and 6a were launched 11 days apart. The two capsules meeting up in space.

Edited by Beati Dogu on Saturday 3rd August 01:25

[MartG]

Liftoff of Ariane 5 VA249 planned for today, 6 August, between 21:30 and 23:51 CEST ( 22:30 to 00:51 BST )

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQ8HecMG2qs

Edited by MartG on Tuesday 6th August 16:43

[Beati Dogu]

That was 20.30 to 22.51 UK time for the Ariane.

CEST = Central European Summer Time, which is two hours ahead of GMT/UTC and an hour ahead of BST

Fortunately I just turned on it time to watch it launch at the start of the window. A daylight launch for once.

Seems to be OK so far.

[MartG]

RocketLab have announced that their Electron will become reuseable ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=joONWIGtcdY )

Recovery of the first stage will involve a helicopter snagging it while it descends by parachute

[MartG]

Tomorrow

Atlas 5 • AEHF 5
Launch window: 0944-1144 GMT

[Beati Dogu]

Weather looks good.

They've already tanked it up with fuel (RP-1). None of this super-chilled last minute stuff like SpaceX. Although they did pause for a while due to the threat of lightning.

[MartG]

Youtube link

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEv-M7iBmVU

[Eric Mc]

Some interesting shadow effects on the plume. The rocket will have ascended into sunlight as it climbed up from Cape Canaveral producing these odd visual effects.

[MartG]

[MartG]

[Beati Dogu]

Perfect lighting conditions really.

[MartG]

Scott Manley video about yesterday's Atlas launch - he points out that you can actually see the shadow on the plume of the fairings being jettisoned

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xluxhnui5RQ&fe...

[MartG]

Electron • “Look Ma, No Hands”
Launch time: 1257 GMT (8:57 a.m. EDT) 16/8/19
Launch site: Launch Complex 1, Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand
A Rocket Lab Electron rocket will launch on its eighth flight from a facility on the Mahia Peninsula on New Zealand’s North Island. The Electron rocket and its Curie upper stage will place four small satellites into orbit on a rideshare mission arranged by Spaceflight and Rocket Lab. The payloads include the BlackSky Global 4 commercial Earth observation satellite, two tech demo CubeSats for Air Force Space Command’s Pearl White program, and commercial CubeSat for the French company UnseenLabs, which is developing a constellation of maritime surveillance spacecraft. The mission is nicknamed “Look Ma, No Hands.”