Launch Roundup: Falcon 9 launches customer payloads, China to fly resupply mission to Tiangong

Date:
Mon, 11 Nov 2024 23:10:24 +0000

Description:
While SpaceX is preparing to fly Starship on its sixth integrated test flight next week, The post Launch Roundup: Falcon 9 launches customer payloads,
China to fly resupply mission to Tiangong appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com .

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While SpaceX is preparing to fly Starship on its sixth integrated test flight next week, the company flew one satellite and plans to fly another to geostationary transfer orbit this week. Meanwhile, four Starlink missions are scheduled to fly this week, with three launching from Florida and one launching from California.

Over in China, an unknown orbital mission is set to launch from Taiyuan and a cargo resupply mission to the countrys Tiangong space station is scheduled to fly from Wenchang.



SpaceX Falcon 9 | Koreasat 6A

The Koreasat 6A communications satellite launched aboard a Falcon 9 from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Monday, Nov. 11, at 12:22 PM EST (17:22 UTC). This mission is the first to use LC-39A since the launch of NASAs Europa Clipper atop a Falcon Heavy in October. LC-39A must be converted to support Falcon Heavy, meaning Falcon 9 cannot fly from the pad in the weeks before and after a Falcon Heavy launch.

Falcon 9 booster B1067-23 took an eastward flight path that allowed the payload to be inserted into geostationary transfer orbit (GTO), while the booster conducted a return to launch site (RTLS) landing with a safe
touchdown at Landing Zone 1 (LZ-1). This was only the second RTLS recovery
for a booster flying a satellite to GTO after the Ovzon-3 mission on Jan. 3
of this year.



The 3,500 kg Koreasat 6A satellite uses the Thales Alenia Space Spacebus 4000B2 platform and is designed for a 15-year design life. It will be placed in the 116-degree east slot to provide fixed and broadcasting satellite service to South Korea, with 20 transponders for fixed service and six transponders for TV broadcasting service. The satellite will replace the Koreasat 6 spacecraft, which launched in 2010.

Although the mission utilized an RTLS recovery, SpaceX still sent one of
their recovery operations ships, Bob , to sea to retrieve the payload
fairings that covered Koreasat 6A during launch. Fairings can be expensive to make and SpaceX has perfected their retrieval and reuse, saving on launch and manufacturing costs.

This flight was the 107th Falcon 9 launch of 2024 as well as the 109th Falcon family mission of the year. In addition, B1067 joined two other boosters B1061 and B1062 that have flown 23 times, which is the current record for number of times that a booster has flown. Falcon 9 on the pad at SLC-40. (Credit: Julia Bergeron)

SpaceX Falcon 9 | Starlink 6-69

The Starlink 6-69 mission, delayed from Sunday, Nov. 10 due to weather conditions in the recovery area, launched on Monday, Nov. 11, just a few
hours after the Koreasat 6A launch. Liftoff occurred from Space Launch Complex-40 (SLC-40) at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) at 4:28 PM EST (21:28 UTC).

Falcon booster B1080-12 flew on a southeast trajectory and landed on SpaceXs droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas. The mission carried 24 Starlink v2 Mini satellites to low-Earth orbit (LEO); before this flight there were 7,256 Starlink satellites of all versions launched, with 2,542 of these being the second generation v2 Mini type. Starlink 6-69s satellites were deployed in an initial orbit of 281 km by 291 km at an inclination of 43 degrees.

This flight was the 108th Falcon 9 mission of 2024 and the 110th Falcon
family mission of the year. It was also the second Falcon 9 launch from Florida of the day. A Chang Zheng 4C ignites its four YF-21C first stage engines seconds before liftoff. (Credit: Xinhua)

CASC Chang Zheng 4C | Unknown Payload

China is scheduled to launch a rocket, believed to be a Chang Zheng 4C (CZ-4C), from LC-9 at Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center (TSLC) on Wednesday, Nov. 13, at 22:50 UTC. Liftoff is scheduled for the start of a 33-minute launch window ending at 23:07 UTC. The payload is currently not known.

If the rocket flying this mission is indeed a CZ-4C, this flight will be the third flight of 2024 for the CZ-4C and the 56th launch overall for this
rocket since 2006. The 45 m tall three-stage rocket, capable of launching up to 4,200 kg to LEO, has 53 successes in 55 flights to date. The rocket uses storable but toxic hypergolic fuels, while newer generation Chang Zheng rockets use liquid oxygen as the oxidizer and fuels like hydrogen or methane.

TSLC is an inland launch base in Shanxi Province, and is primarily used to launch satellites into Sun-synchronous orbits in addition to being a
ballistic missile test launch site. The payload is likely to be an Earth observation, weather, scientific, or reconnaissance satellite, as these often use Sun-synchronous orbits. A view of a stack of Starlink satellites
including a Starlink Direct To Cell satellite at the top. The deployable antenna and its hinge can clearly be seen in this image. (Credit: SpaceX)

SpaceX Falcon 9 | Starlink 9-11

The second launch of Wednesday, Nov. 13, is a Starlink launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB) in California. The launch of Starlink 9-11 from Space Launch Complex-4E (SLC-4E) at VSFB is scheduled for 8:21 PM PST (04:21 UTC on Thursday, Nov. 14), at the start of a four-hour window ending at 12:21 AM PST on Thursday, Nov. 14 (08:21 UTC).

The booster, which is not yet known, is flying a batch of 20 Starlink satellites to LEO. This batch will include 13 Direct to Cell satellites and seven of the original v2 Mini satellites. Booster recovery is set to utilize SpaceXs Of Course I Still Love You droneship, which will be stationed downrange in the Pacific.

This flight will be the 109th Falcon 9 launch of 2024 and the 111th Falcon family flight of the year. With a successful launch, the number of Direct to Cell satellites in orbit will rise from 271 to 284. Every Falcon flight until the end of the year is now setting a new record for the number of Falcon 9
and Falcon family missions flown in a single calendar year. There were 148 Falcon 9 missions planned for this year, but several brief pauses in flying forced by mission anomalies or weather conditions will not allow that target to be met. 22 Starlink satellites are deployed on the Group 10-8 mission. (Credit: SpaceX)

SpaceX Falcon 9 | Starlink 6-68

SpaceX is scheduled to fly the Starlink 6-68 mission from SLC-40 at CCSFS on Thursday, Nov. 14, at 5:30 AM EST (10:30 UTC) at the start of a four-hour window ending at 9:30 AM EST (14:30 UTC).

Starlink 6-68, whose booster is not yet known, is to fly on a southeast trajectory from CCSFS. A batch of Starlink v2 Mini satellites will be
deployed to LEO, while the booster will be recovered on a droneship in the Atlantic.

If current schedules hold, this flight will be the 110th Falcon 9 mission of 2024 and the 112th Falcon family launch of this year.

CASC Chang Zheng 7 | Tianzhou 8

Chinas second launch of the week is a flight to its Tiangong space station in LEO. The Tianzhou 8 mission will see a Tianzhou cargo resupply spacecraft fly to Tiangong atop a Chang Zheng 7 (CZ-7) Y9 rocket from LC-201 at the Wenchang Space Launch Site on Hainan Island south of the Chinese mainland. Launch is scheduled for Friday, Nov. 15, at 15:13 UTC, with CZ-7 lofting Tianzhou 8
into an orbit inclined 41 degrees.

The Tianzhou 8 spacecraft, based on the original Tiangong-1 prototype space station launched in 2011, is carrying supplies to Tiangong in a similar
manner to the Progress, Cygnus, and Cargo Dragon spacecraft that fly to the International Space Station. This spacecraft, massing 13,000 kg, will supply the Shenzhou-19 crew currently aboard Tiangong. A Tianzhou cargo ship before its mission. (Credit: China News Service)

This flight is the fourth launch of a CZ-7 family rocket this year and the 17th overall mission of the CZ-7 family since 2016. The two-stage CZ-7
rocket, equipped with four liquid strap-on boosters, uses liquid oxygen and RP-1 kerosene, while the CZ-7A variant adds a third stage that uses liquid oxygen and hydrogen for payloads going to higher orbits.

SpaceX Falcon 9 | Starlink 6-66

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Two days after Starlink 6-68, another Falcon 9 will carry a batch of Starlink v2 Mini satellites to LEO. Launch is scheduled to occur from SLC-40 at CCSFS at 1:04 PM EST (18:04 UTC) on Saturday, Nov. 16, though Starlink 6-69s delay could affect this launch as well.

The booster, which is not yet known, will take a southeast trajectory and
land on one of SpaceXs east coast droneships. The current record for time between launches from SLC-40 is two days, 19 hours, and 40 minutes, and if schedules hold, the time between Starlink 6-68s launch and this launch would set a new record for pad turnaround time.

This flight is the 111th Falcon 9 launch of 2024 and the 113th Falcon family mission of the year.

SpaceX Falcon 9 | Optus-X

The final launch scheduled for this week is the launch of the Optus-X Australian communications satellite mission atop a Falcon 9 on Sunday, Nov. 17, at 4:29 PM EST (21:29 UTC) from LC-39A.

The booster, which is not yet known, is to fly on an eastward trajectory, injecting Optus-X into GTO. The current booster recovery method is not yet public, but RTLS could be used if the satellites mass and performance requirements allow it. Otherwise, booster recovery would be on a droneship in the Atlantic. The NGC MRV approaching a satellite. Optus-X may be a MRV mission. (Credit: Northrop Grumman)

There is not much publicly known about the Optus-X payload, except that it is built by Northrop Grumman Corporation (NGC). Optus signed a contract in early 2022 with NGC and its SpaceLogistics wholly-owned subsidiary with SpaceX as the launch provider for a mission extension pod (MEP) to be attached to the Optus D3 satellite by the Mission Robotic Vehicle (MRV) in 2025.

The MRV is SpaceLogistics next-generation on-orbit servicing vehicle. It will use a robotic arm to install the MEP onto the Optus D3 satellite to extend
its life by at least six years. The Optus D2 satellites expected end of service in May 2025, as well as Optus-11s delay until at least 2027, will
make this mission more urgent.

However, the Optus D3 satellite is at the 156-degree east slot, whereas a US Federal Communications Commission document references the Optus-X mission communicating at the 88-degree east geostationary slot with Northrop Grumman as the mission manager. The Singtel ST-2 satellite, launched in 2011 by Arianespace, is stationed at the 88-degree east slot, and Singtel is the parent company of Optus.

Optus-X is the 112th Falcon 9 mission this year and the 114th Falcon family launch of 2024. If Optus-X is an MRV, it would follow two previous NGC
Mission Extension Vehicle flights that have successfully extended the life of other geostationary satellites.

(Lead image: A Falcon 9 sits on the pad at SLC-4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base. Credit: SpaceX)



The post Launch Roundup: Falcon 9 launches customer payloads, China to fly resupply mission to Tiangong appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com .



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Link to news story: https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2024/11/launch-roundup-111124/


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