Virgin Orbit Launcherone
WASHINGTON — Virgin Orbit is preparing to perform a second flight of its LauncherOne small launch vehicle in the second half of December, carrying a set of NASA-sponsored cubesats.
Virgin Orbit is just months away from the first launch of its LauncherOne rocket. The company is currently undergoing an extensive test campaign to ensure that the vehicle will function correctly. Virgin Galactic, part of Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group, began development of its LauncherOne system in mid-2012, after preliminary study of the idea beginning in 2007. The company's initial goal was to be able to boost 120 kg to sun sychronous low earth orbit for less than $10 million. The company initially.
A Nov. 24 “Local Notice to Mariners” by the U.S. Coast Guard stated that Virgin Orbit “will conduct hazardous operations” offshore from San Nicolas Island, California, between Dec. 18 and 21. Those operations will take place during a four-hour window that opens at 1 p.m. Eastern.
The notice does not explicitly state that a launch will take place, but Virgin Orbit used the same language in a Coast Guard notice for its first orbital launch attempt in May. That earlier notice, which also cited “hazardous operations,” had the same four-hour window and location for the operations.
The company has not announced a formal launch date yet, but has stated it intends to carry out a second launch before the end of the year. The company shipped the LauncherOne rocket for what it calls the Launch Demo 2 mission from its factory in Long Beach, California, to the Mojave Air and Space Port earlier this month. Technicians then mated the rocket to the company’s Boeing 747 carrier aircraft, according to a Nov. 13 update by the company.
The first LauncherOne launch May 25 failed when the rocket’s NewtonThree first-stage engine shut down several seconds after ignition. The company determined that a liquid oxygen propellant line failed, causing the engine to shut down. Microsoft office 365 login. The flight had been going as expected up until that point, company officials said, including the release of the rocket from the 747 and ignition of the engine.
While that first launch did not carry a payload, the upcoming Launch Demo 2 mission will carry 10 cubesats, most of which are university-built satellites sponsored by NASA’s CubeSat Launch Initiative program. The launch itself is under a Venture Class Launch Services contract NASA awarded in 2015 to demonstrate new small launch vehicles.
Virgin Orbit is not the only small launch vehicle developer attempting to reach orbit in December. Astra announced Nov. 19 it will perform its second orbital launch attempt during a 12-day window that opens Dec. 7 at Pacific Spaceport Complex – Alaska on Kodiak Island. Astra’s vehicle, Rocket 3.2, is similar to the Rocket 3.1 vehicle that failed to reach orbit during a launch Sept. 11 from Kodiak.
A third small launch vehicle developer, Firefly Aerospace, had been targeting December for the first launch of its Alpha small launch vehicle from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. However, that launch is now expected no earlier than January, said Col. Anthony Mastalir, commander of the 30th Space Wing, during a briefing earlier this month.
Rocket Lab announced Nov. 24 that the next launch of its Electron small launch vehicle is scheduled for a 14-day window that opens Dec. 12 from the company’s New Zealand launch site. That launch will be a dedicated mission for Japanese company Synspective, carrying its StriX-α synthetic aperture radar satellite.
Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.
On the strength of a busy few weeks since our last update, our team is about to initiate our pre-launch operations phase for the Launch Demo 2 mission. We’re excited to share a few updates with you.
When we last left off, our Launch Demo 2 rocket was in the midst of final integration on our shop floor, with the team working to incorporate the upgraded NewtonThree engine that will power LauncherOne’s main stage. As expected, we were able to take advantage of the lessons learned from the previous LauncherOne and finish all that work in short order. With LauncherOne buttoned up from nose to tail, we then hit the road again to transport the rocket up to Mojave Air and Space Port.
LauncherOne left our factory in Long Beach early Wednesday morning, and was fully mated to our carrier aircraft by around 10 A.M. the next day. Now, out at the end of a taxiway in Mojave, a familiar sight has begun to take shape. The trailers that serve as our transportable ground equipment have been set up on the tarmac. Just a few feet away, we’ve parked our carrier aircraft Cosmic Girl, with LauncherOne nestled safely underwing. What was a bare concrete pad just days ago is now a complete launch site.
Additionally, all 10 of the payloads that will fly onboard LauncherOne are now safely encapsulated in their dispensers, and will travel up to Mojave separately in our mobile payload cleanroom. Consistent with our normal operations flow, we will mate the payload fairing to the rocket just before our final launch rehearsal. As our launch date approaches, we’ll pull that payload trailer adjacent to Cosmic Girl and mate the fairing to the rocket while it is attached to the aircraft. This is all excellent practice for our team, as the process will be exactly the same for future missions from other planned launch sites like in the UK, Guam and Japan.
Before that final mate happens, we’re planning yet another round of checkouts for our flight hardware, including full-up wet dress rehearsals.
As we progress through cryogenic testing, we will announce our specific launch window, which is currently projected to occur before the end of the year. Our team has done a best-in-industry job in digesting knowledge acquired from Launch Demo 1 to better inform our work for Launch Demo 2, implementing a series of hardware upgrades and performing a rigorous suite of major tests. We’ve done a hell of a lot these past few months as we worked to improve our probability for success, including modifications to our main engine assembly, the hot-fire and vibration testing of our engines, cryoload tests, full system check-outs, aircraft inspection, flight software qualification, and more. And what’s remarkable is we’ve done all this in the context of a global pandemic.
Still, our progress has been steady and our focus unwavering. It is satisfying work, and our team is happiest when we are making progress towards our goal of fielding the world’s most flexible and mobile launch system.
As always, we’ll keep you all updated as work continues. Nintendo plus. With only weeks left on the countdown clock to Launch Demo 2, we hope you all are as excited as we are to see LauncherOne fly again.
Virgin Orbit Launcherone Rocket
To stay in the loop, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or Instagram.
Virgin Orbit Launcherone Rocket