This amazing photo just came in from the SpaceX team on the ground in Kwaj. Man, I miss being there. (not that I ever was there)
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Time-lapse photo of Falcon 1 under the stars
Elon (my bro') wins an Oscar
Well, he actually won a George. But it's the rocket industry's version of an Oscar. Elon just received the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics George M. Low Space Transportation Award for 2008. Maybe we should call it a 'Jorge'? No? Okay, a George.
The award is presented for a timely outstanding contribution to the field of space transportation. I think Elon qualifies for that one. :)
It will be awarded at the annual AIAA Space 2008 Conference in September.
Wait! It's better than an Oscar because it's only given out every two years. Yay Bro!
Falcon 1 is vertical
Weather conditions are good right now for the launch window that opens on Friday. The base have given us five days to find a time to launch. The final decision will be based on conditions on the ground. The priority is always the safety and reliability of the vehicle, and the successful delivery of the Defense Department and NASA satellites to orbit.
That being said, doesn't it just look cool as heck?
[damn. Blogger is down and won't let me upload photos. I've reposted this picture on my typepad blog. check it out here]
Monday, July 28, 2008
Launch window coming up!
We're now 4 days away from the launch window for the Falcon 1 flight 3 vehicle, equipped with SpaceX's new Merlin 1C regeneratively cooled engine. Launch window is August 1-5, and launch will occur out of our favorite launch base in the world, Kwaj.
For those that missed it, there was a successful static fire on June 25th. For those that don't remember how cool a static fire is, check out this video of the static fire from Falcon 1 Demoflight 2.
Falcon 1 Flight 3 will carry the Trailblazer satellite for the Jumpstart Program of the Department of Defense’s Operationally Responsive Space Office (ORS). Additional secondary payloads include an adapter system developed by the government of Malaysia that holds two small NASA satellites.
I'll keep you updated as I hear more...
(check this page to stay up-to-date Falcon 1 using Me.dium Social Search) Digg It!
Thursday, April 24, 2008
SpaceX gets Launch Services Contract from NASA
SpaceX can now compete for more NASA missions. Ah yeah!
From Elon:
"Receiving the NASA Launch Services contract for the Falcon 1 and Falcon 9 is a significant endorsement of SpaceX's products and of our plans for the future. In addition to the fourteen missions we've sold thus far, gaining NLS approval constitutes further validation of SpaceX's technology, and opens the doors for the wide variety of NASA spacecraft to fly aboard our launch vehicles. We look forward to working with NASA to send their payloads to Earth orbit, Geostationary orbit, the Moon, Mars and beyond.
--Elon--"
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Falcon 1 ships to Kwaj for June Launch
Flight 3 of Falcon 1 heads to Kwajalein, with the upgraded Merlin 1C engine.
This flight will carry the DoD's (Department of Defense's) ORS (Operationally Responsive Space) office's first JMP (Jumpstart Mission Payload) into orbit.
I wonder if texting actually started with the Department of Defense? They certainly keep to their abbreviations, imnsho. :/
From the SpaceX blog:
"In addition to the ORS primary payload, Flight 003 will also carry a rideshare adapter experiment for ATSB of Malaysia (the primary customer for the following Falcon 1 launch, F1-004), and two CubeSat payloads.ge.)"
I'll keep you updated.
K
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Saturday, August 04, 2007
If you thought the photos were cool...
Check out this high-quality video of the launch.
I grabbed this screenshot as the first stage separated.(click the image to start the video)
Thursday, August 02, 2007
Unbelievable shots of DemoFlight2
When I saw these, I almost wet my drawers. It's amazing that we see these kinds of photos all the time, but this time for me it was just awe-inspiring. I have actually touched that nozzle. I watched as engineers worked on the finishing touches of the rocket.
And now I see it looking down from outer space. That is just awesome.
So here you go:
T+17s: Falcon1 leaving Omelek island in the mid-Pacific
T+2m58s: First Stage Separation
T+3m9s: Fairing separation
T+7m17s: Second Stage Engine firing away
T+8m12s: End of Mission... high above the horizonAmazing stuff. Digg It!
Demo Flight 2 Review Update Released
Hey everyone.
I know it's been a little while, but there's a great report released by SpaceX on DemoFlight2. You might have already seen it, but in case you didn't, I thought I'd post it to the blog.
Some quick excerpts for the A.D.D. among us:
FAQ
Did the hot-fire abort during the previous launch attempt have any effect on any of the anomalies or observations?
No relationship between the March 19 (PST) abort and the above mentioned anomalies has been found. The engines are designed and tested to be re-started in rapid succession. All vehicle and ground systems showed nominal prior to the decision to attempt launch again.
What caused the abort of the first launch attempt?
Cold fuel caused the combustion chamber pressure to be approximately 0.5% below the engine computer abort limit after engine start. Investigation revealed that the fuel was colder than normal due to the previous day’s launch attempt. Draining back colder than normal fuel into insulated tanks did not allow sufficient time to warm to expected levels for the next day’s operation. The solution is to add warming to the fuel conditioning regimen and verify fuel temp in the T-2 hours launch commit criteria.
And, the conclusion to the report:
This mission represents a large step forward for SpaceX and the Falcon 1 launch vehicle. Although short of complete success, a significant majority of mission objectives were met from both a programmatic and technical perspectives. Open issues were identified, but no items are anticipated to require major re-designs to fix.
Obtaining flight data from the vehicle was the primary objective of this test flight and was clearly achieved based on both the quantity and quality of performance and environmental data. Additionally, concept of operation, procedures, ground systems and control automation systems were validated. A rapid response capability was also demonstrated with a hot-fire abort within 70 minutes of launch.
Stage 1 recovery was not demonstrated and represents the only operational domain from which data was not attained by this mission. Additionally stage 2 coast and Kestrel re-start was not demonstrated, nor was Payload simulator deployment. Eight anomalies were identified which will be addressed prior to the next mission.
--------
For the full report, click here.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Hooollllyyyyy Shhiiiiiittttt!!!!
It made it. It's in space. The final frontier!!!
Mofo, that is awesome beyond words.
Will update when I know more.
Here's a sweeeeet photo from the rocket as it left the atmosphere.
Nothing much more to say...
Main Pressure Chamber Abort
Pressure for the Main Chamber was 0.2% under the abort limit.
Missed by a hair...
Attempt will continue after analysis.
Monday, March 19, 2007
T-Minus 8min
Auto-sequence has begun and the strongback has been lowered.
All systems still go.
Falcon 1 on Omelek
For those that don't have access to the webcam, here's a live photo from 1 minute ago.
t-minus 20minT-Zero at 4:45pm
As many of you probably know, the launch is in progress as we speak. I've been (painfully) in a car while this has been happening.
The status is that t-zero was moved from 4pm to 4:45pm to examine a data connectivity error between El Segundo (SpaceX head office), and Kwaj.
20 minutes to Ground Zero.
For the live webcam, go to:
http://www.spacex.com/webcast.php
Kimbal
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Static Fire Successful
In preparation for launch of the DemoFlight 2, the team on Kwaj performed a static fire test yesterday. A static fire is when the rocket is fully loaded with fuel, and taken all the way through countdown and then held down as the engines are fired.
The reason for the static fire is to go through the countdown and check all systems. The static fire was successful and proceeded without any aborts. (aborts would be a computer alert to abort the launch based on any small system failure)
Initial review is very positive, almost to the point of a perfect countdown. There was an alert on the GPS system, but it is a back-up system designed to help with accuracy of the rocket's position in space, but not flight-critical.
Regardless, the SpaceX team are examining the GPS thoroughly to understand what caused the alert. Once the scope of the problem is understood, it will determine when the launch will occur.
In the meantime, here is a killer video of the static fire:
http://www.spacex.com/00Graphics/Videos/StaticFire%20HScam1%202007-03-16.wmv
Kimbal
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