MRO's Atlas V launch - August 10th

[dreada5]

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/MRO/launch/f_atlas.html<br /><br />I just had a quick question about the Atlas V, since this is the first time NASA uses it to launch a Mars-bound spacecraft.<br /><br />What so special about Atlas V, I know they're supposed to be more powerful and their manufacturers would like a man-rated version to be used for the CEV booster. But what advantages are brought to using one for MRO's launch.<br /><br />Does it get MRO to its destination quicker?<br /><br />Is MRO significantly heavier than past Mars orbiters?

 

[nacnud]

<font color="yellow">Is MRO significantly heavier than past Mars orbiters?<br /><br /><font color="white">Bingo!</font></font>

 

[remekr]

From the NASA MRO site:<br /><br />"Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter will use an Atlas V-401 launch vehicle, the smallest of the Atlas V family. It is 57 meters (188 feet) tall. This launch vehicle was selected because it provides the performance needed to fly a large spacecraft to Mars in the 2005 launch period.<br /><br />Although the geometry of Earth and Mars permit missions to be launched every two years, the 2005 mission requires more performance than for 2003 and 2007 launch dates given the position of the planets in their orbits. In addition, this spacecraft is heavier than previous Mars missions."<br />

 

[dreada5]

Thanks guys.<br /><br />Next week's gonna be an action-packed week for NASA then with the shuttle returning and MRO launching!! <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /><br /><br />

 

[bpcooper]

And GOES-N now August 12.<br /><br />Aside from MRO being a lot bigger and heavier than recent Mars missions (the main reason), Atlas 5 also provides much better performance than Delta 2. You may notice the launch window is 105 to 120 minutes long, whereas Delta 2 provides just two instantanous opportunities each day. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>-Ben</p> </div>

 

[bpcooper]

Yes, I'll second that. It is almost as close as the press site (about 4.5 miles on the beach vs 4), in fact. If anyone is attending and needs directions just let me know. Same goes for GOES/Delta 4; the best viewing for that is just outside the Air Force Gate and along the Beeline over the Banana River. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>-Ben</p> </div>

 

[bpcooper]

Postponed at least 24 hours due to unspecified spacecraft issue. They must launch by Sept 5. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>-Ben</p> </div>

 

[unclefred]

The delay is for the Atlas booster, not for the spacecraft. A gyro identical to those on the Atlas may have a problem at its manufacturer (Honeywell in Clearwater, FL.). The delay is to provide time to investigate the situation.

 

[shoogerbrugge]

The spacecraft is only 2180kg right, and the payload was swapped from an Atlas 3B to Atlas V<br /><br />Doesn't that mean that there is loads of spare capacity because of the lighter payload and stronger LV. How do they compensate this?<br /><br />Do they just cut the engines sooner or fly it at lower throttle and leave lots of propellant unused?

 

[bpcooper]

Correct, thanks. NASA said unspecified "spacecraft issue" with the initial announcement this morning but later corrected to the gyro. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>-Ben</p> </div>

 

[yurkin]

bump*<br /><br />NASA's Next Leap in Mars Exploration Ready for Launch<br />August 09, 2005<br /><br />NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is ready for a morning launch on Thursday, Aug. 11. The spacecraft will arrive at Mars in March 2006 for a mission to understand the planet's water riddles and to advance the exploration of the mysterious red planet.<br /><br />The mission's first launch opportunity window is 4:50 to 6:35 a.m. PDT, Thursday. If the launch is postponed, additional launch windows open daily at different times each morning through August. For trips from Earth to Mars, the planets move into good position for only a short period every 26 months. The best launch position is when Earth is about to overtake Mars in their concentric racing lanes around the Sun.<br /><br />"The teams preparing this orbiter and its launch vehicle have done excellent work and kept to schedule. We have a big spacecraft loaded with advanced instruments for inspecting Mars in greater detail than any previous orbiter, and we have the first Atlas V launch vehicle to carry an interplanetary mission. A very potent and exciting combination," said NASA's Mars Exploration Program Director Doug McCuistion.<br /><br />The mission will lift off from Launch Complex 41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. It is the first government launch of Lockheed Martin's Atlas V launch vehicle. "We're ready to fly, counting down through final procedures," said Chuck Dovale, director for expendable-launch-vehicle launches at NASA Kennedy Space Center, Fla.<br /><br />When the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter arrives in March, it begins a half-year "aerobraking" process. The spacecraft will gradually adjust the shape of its orbit by using friction from carefully calculated dips into the top of the Martian atmosphere. The mission’s primary science phase starts in November 2006.<br /><br />"Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter will give us several times more data about Mars than all previous missions combined," said James Graf, pro

 

[john_316]

Well hopefully we have another successful launch here tomorrow or when ever they decide to fly.<br /><br />I like the Ball Space Camera on this puppy... I wonder what the deal will be when we goto the moon. You would think we would either just go or send a few more probes to orbit and do more detailed analysis since we didnt have this tech back in the late 60's and 70's.<br /><br /><img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /><br />

 

[yurkin]

Thursday, August 11 from 7:50 to 9:35 a.m. EDT<br />http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/MRO/main/index.html<br /><br />Looks like it’s a GO. And JPL finally put the MRO Launch Press Kit up. <br />Does anyone know if they are going to be changing MRO’s name?<br />

 

[propforce]

Is that an additional 6 months or is that a part of that total 7 months? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[nacnud]

additional

 

[shuttle_rtf]

Pretty excited about this launch. There's good access to video feeds and info, so we'll cover this one.<br /><br />I'm assuming NASA TV will cover this live? I see on the KSC feed there's two cameras pre-launch for capture purposes...but if NASA TV has it, all the better.

 

[nacnud]

Another quick update from SFN:<font color="yellow"><br /><br /><center><b>Weather plays havoc with Mars launch countdown</b></center><br /><br />An overnight thunderstorm forced the evacuation of Cape Canaveral's Launch Complex 41, throwing the countdown for the launch of NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter aboard an Atlas 5 rocket 60-90 minutes behind schedule. Liftoff is now scheduled for no earlier than 8:50 a.m. EDT (1250 GMT).<br /></font>

 

[najab]

Cool. For anyone with access to the main satellite feed, the 4th NASA-TV channel has a feed from the JPL mission control room.

 

[mrmorris]

SG -- where is the Atlas 5 pad in relation to the Shuttle pads (i.e. North/South and approx miles)? From Orlando, it makes a significant difference in which portion of the horizon the suckers show up in. I always end up looking in (slightly) the wrong direction and missing the first portion of launches.

 

[najab]

That LH2 anomaly sounds scrub-ish to me....

 

[mah_fl]

Morning chaps, my boss just called and said he'll be late, so I can watch the launch live <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" />.

 

[mrmorris]

<font color="yellow">"south of the Shuttle pads by about 1 1/2 miles. "</font><br /><br />Isn't one set of pads way the heck away from the shuttle pads (15-20 miles) -- maybe the Delta pads?

 

[bpcooper]

I'm at the launch site now, about 4 miles from pad 41. Hydrogen fuel sensor issues. It never ends. Still 55 mins left in the window.<br /><br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>-Ben</p> </div>

 

[mrmorris]

<font color="yellow">"The Delta II pad is 3 miles south of the Delta IV pad."</font><br /><br />Ayup -- the Delta II is the one that got me. I remember watching the Deep Impact launch. People asked me where it was going to show up, and I pointed towards where I recalled launches being (shuttle launches), and was embarrassed when I was way off. I simply assumed I had misremembered. Next launch I watched was an Atlas (the Inmarsat launch... maybe?) -- and I was looking toward the Delta II pad...<br /><br />I think with today's launch I'll put a post-it note on the window to mark the Atlas-V pad. <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" />

 

[bpcooper]

Those distances are not quite accurate. 41 is about 2 miles south of 39A; then 40 another 2 miles South; then 37 another 3, and Delta 2 pad 17 is a good six miles South of 37.<br /><br />MRO is now the end of the window 9:35. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>-Ben</p> </div>