Astra is counting down to the first of three launches this summer to deploy a fleet of six small NASA hurricane search satellites. The launch of the small Astra launcher from Cape Canaveral with the first two TROPICS nanosatellites is scheduled for a two-hour window that will open at 12:00 EDT (1600 GMT), weather permitting.
The official weather forecast for the launch of the U.S. Space Force’s 45th Meteorological Squadron predicts a 60% chance of unfavorable conditions for takeoff at the two-hour window opening on Sunday. At the end of the window, the probability of bad weather rises to 90%.
Astra will launch the mission from Space Launch Complex 46, a commercial launch facility operated by Space Florida near the eastern end of the Cape Canaveral space force station.
The rocket flying Sunday, called the Rocket 3.3 or LV0010, is the smallest orbital-class launcher currently in service worldwide. It is about 43 feet (13.1 meters) high and weighs about as much as a small commercial airplane when fully powered.
The two TROPICS satellites are each the size of a loaf of bread or a shoebox. They are full of miniaturized sensor technology that they once needed to fly on a satellite larger than a refrigerator.
Microwave radiometers from each of the TROPICS satellites will collect image, temperature, and humidity data about tropical cyclones. With a fleet of satellites, the TROPICS mission will be able to monitor rapid changes in cyclones at a rate of at least once per hour.
“These are important variables because they may be related to the intensity of the storm, and even the potential for future intensification,” said William Blackwell, principal investigator of the TROPICS mission at MIT Lincoln Laboratory. “So we are trying to make these measurements with a relatively high revision. This is really the new key feature offered by the constellation TROPICS, it is the improvement of the storm revision.
“We will have six satellites in orbit and one satellite will work to make a good picture of the storm, and then the next satellite will orbit near it an hour ago,” Blackwell said. “So, about every hour, we’re going to have a new picture of the storm, and that’s about a factor of five to eight better than we have today. With these new, quickly updated image measurements, we hope this helps us understand better the storm and ultimately lead to a better forecast of the trajectory and intensity of the hurricane. “
TROPICS stands for Time-Resolved Observations of Precipitation structure and Storm Intensity with a Constellation of Smallsats. The mission has a total cost of approximately $ 32 million, according to NASA.
Each TROPICS satellite, mounted by Blue Canyon Technologies in Colorado, weighs about 11.8 pounds (5.3 kilograms).
Astra will aim to release the two TROPIC satellites into orbit about 357 miles (550 kilometers) above Earth, with an inclination of 29.75 degrees from the equator. The low-slope orbit will focus TROPIC observations on hot spots for the development of tropical cyclones.
Astra’s Rocket 3.3 vehicle at Space Launch Complex 46 before the launch of the TROPICS-1 mission. Credits: Astra / Brady Kenniston
Founded in 2016, Astra aims to finally launch daily missions to bring small satellites into orbit for various customers, including the U.S. military, commercial companies, and NASA. The company has successfully reached orbit in two out of six attempts.
Astra’s most recent flight in March was the first time the company had launched satellites into orbit, following a takeoff from Kodiak Island, Alaska. Astra’s previous launch in February, which left Cape Canaveral, failed to put a payload of NASA-sponsored CubeSats into orbit.
NASA officials are aware of the risk of flying satellites on a new, relatively untested launcher. TROPICS is part of NASA’s Earth Venture program, a series of cost-limit missions designed for Earth science research. NASA assumes more risk for Venture-class missions, and the agency says only four of the six TROPICS satellites, or two of Astra’s three launches, should work.
The first launch of Astra with two TROPICS satellites will begin with the ignition of the five kerosene-powered engines of the Rocket 3.3 on platform 46. Delphin engines will drive the launcher off the platform with 32,500 pounds of thrust, fueling the rocket to the east. northeast of Cape Canaveral.
The engine of the first stage is expected to stop three minutes after take-off, followed by the separation of the payload cover of the rocket, which covers the upper stage and the payloads of TROPICS during the ascent by the atmosphere. The rocket’s reinforcement stage will then be launched to fall into the Atlantic, allowing the upper stage to ignite its small 740-pound thrust for five minutes to accelerate to orbital speed.
The deployment of TROPICS satellites is scheduled at T + plus 8 minutes and 40 seconds, according to a chronology of the mission published by Astra.
Satellites will deploy solar panels to start generating electricity, and ground crews will direct the TROPICS spacecraft through tests and controls.
Artistic illustration of two TROPIC satellites collecting data on hurricanes. Credit: NASA
The second and third TROPICS launches, currently scheduled for late June and mid-July, will aim to deploy the next four satellites in precise orbital planes, giving the constellation adequate space to allow overflights. regular cyclones.
If all three TROPICS launches land as planned, all satellites should be picked up by August, just in time for the peak of the Atlantic hurricane season, according to Will McCarty. NASA program scientist for the mission. The mission is designed for at least one year of scientific observations.
Many CubeSats travel in space on shared travel launches, allowing operators to take advantage of lower costs by grouping their payloads into a single large rocket. But TROPIC satellites need dedicated launches to reach their precise orbital destinations.
“We want to space the spacecraft as much as we can and we want to keep them on the tropical cyclone belt,” Blackwell said. “This general setup allows us to do that, but it requires three separate dedicated launchers.”
Astra outperformed SpaceX, Rocket Lab, Virgin Orbit and Momentus, largely due to its lower-cost proposal, according to NASA. NASA is paying Astra nearly $ 8 million for the entire three-launch campaign.
ROCKET: Astra’s Rocket 3.3 (LV0010)
USEFUL LOAD: TROPICS-1 (two satellites)
LAUNCH PLACE: SLC-46, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida
RELEASE DATE: June 12, 2022
SPEED WINDOW: 12: 00-14: 00 EDT (16: 00-18: 00 GMT)
WEATHER FORECAST: 50% to 80% chance of breaking weather restrictions
BOOSTER RECOVERY: None
AZIMUTH OF LAUNCH: East-Northeast
TARGET ORBIT: 357 miles (550 kilometers), inclination of 29.75 degrees
LAUNCH CHRONOLOGY:
- T + 00: 00: takeoff
- T + 00: 06: Launching begins again
- T + 01: 10: maximum aerodynamic pressure (Max-Q)
- T + 03: 00: cut of the main engine of the first stage (MECO)
- T + 03: 05: Expulsion of the payload fairing
- T + 03: 10: Separation of scenarios
- T + 03: 15: Ignition of the engine of the second stage
- T + 08: 30: cut of the engine of the second stage (SECO)
- T + 08: 40: Deployment of TROPICS
MISSION STATISTICS:
- 7th attempt at orbital launch by Astra
- 5th release of Astra’s Rocket 3.3 configuration
- 2nd Astra launch from Florida
- Fifth orbital launch attempt from platform 46
- 3rd launch of Astra in 2022
- 24th orbital launch based at Cap Cañaveral in 2022
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