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TacSat-2/Minotaur Mission December 11, 2006

TacSat-2/Minotaur Mission December 11, 2006. All Hands Briefing November 16, 2006. Wallops Orbital Launch History. Worldwide: 20 Scout missions (Wallops) 9 Pegasus (1 mobile from Canary Islands) 1 Conestoga (Wallops) 1 Athena (mobile from Kodiak, AK)

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TacSat-2/Minotaur Mission December 11, 2006

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  1. TacSat-2/Minotaur Mission December 11, 2006 All Hands Briefing November 16, 2006

  2. Wallops Orbital Launch History • Worldwide: • 20 Scout missions (Wallops) • 9 Pegasus (1 mobile from Canary • Islands) • 1 Conestoga (Wallops) • 1 Athena (mobile from Kodiak, AK) • Two most recent orbital ground launches from Wallops Island: • Oct 1995 Conestoga • Dec 1985 Scout-G • The first launch involving the Mid-Atlantic Regional Space Port (MARS) and their Pad 0B

  3. The Minotaur Rocket • 4 Rocket motor stages • 2 refurbished Minuteman II stages • 2 commercial Orbital Sciences Corp. stages • 69 feet tall vehicle • 5 feet wide • 5 previous Minotaur launches were from Vandenberg AFB • 450 Minuteman Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs) were in service: highly reliable Minuteman launch from silo Minuteman in silo

  4. Photos of the Dummy Minotaur I Fit-Check - Wallops in June 2005

  5. Nov 7 - Stages 1 & 2 Roll Transfer in PPF

  6. November 15 – Stages 1 & 2

  7. TacSat-2 Spacecraft • Developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory (Albuquerque, NM) – 814 pounds • Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration: 1. Rapid Design, Build, Test with a launch-ready spacecraft within 15 months 2. Responsive Launch, Checkout, Operations to include launch within one week of a callup 3. Militarily Significant Capability includes images sent directly to the theater

  8. TacSat-2 Inertial Stellar Compass • Draper Laboratory’s miniaturized star camera and gyro system enables a spacecraft to continuously determine its attitude or the direction in which it is pointing. • Funded by NASA's New Millennium Program

  9. GeneSat-1 Secondary Spacecraft • NASA Ames Research Center experiment (10 pounds) • Fully automated, miniature spaceflight system provides life support for small living things • Looks for genetic changes in bacteria during spaceflight. • Knowledge may contribute to safe, long-duration space missions by humans

  10. Stages 3 and 4 Pre-Integration

  11. Stages 3 & 4 Mated

  12. Nov 2: Spacecraft Arrives

  13. TacSat-2 Spacecraft

  14. Spacecraft Integrated onto Stage 4

  15. PPOD (with GeneSat inside) Integrated onto Stage 4

  16. TacSat-2/Minotaur Trajectory

  17. Coquina

  18. Antigua

  19. Cleared Hazard Areas Nominal flight path

  20. Minotaur I Hazard Area

  21. Wallops uses a Flight Termination System to protect the public • If the rocket is going outside the cleared hazard areas it will be destroyed. • Multiple data sources (electronic and visual) provide data to the NASA Range Safety Officer to make the decision • Small explosive charges on each stage break up the rocket and the debris falls in the cleared hazard areas.

  22. Flight Termination System Observers Radar & TelemetryTracking Minotaur I Command Transmitter Range Control Center If the flight limits are violated, The Range Safety Officer will destroy the rocket.

  23. Launch Day • Launch Window: 7 AM - 10 AM; like any launch, the launch date could slip. Launch days are Dec. 11 – 20. • 10-minute trajectory from launch to orbital insertion • Viewing – NASA has no official viewing site; however, we recommend: • Visitor Center for NASA Families • Assateague Island open to the public at 6 a.m. (Southern end of Assateague Island will be closed to vehicles and pedestrians)

  24. Keeping Track of the Mission • Before launch • Launch Status Line (757-824-2050) • www.wff.nasa.gov • Day of launch countdown status – There are several ways to keep track of the countdown on launch day • 760 AM (range of 5 to 10 miles from Visitor Center) • www.wff.nasa.gov (running status of count) • Local radio stations will provide updates (WESR, WVES, WCTG – thus far)

  25. What’s Next? • April 2007: Near Field InfraRed Experiment (NFIRE) - (Minotaur I) • October 2007: TacSat-3 (Minotaur I)

  26. DARPA/Falcon • AirLaunch QuickReach • Approaching flight-demonstration decision • If confirmed, 1st flight from WFF in 2008 • Orbital rocket deployed from C-17 • SpaceX Falcon • 1st flight failure in early 2006, from Kwajalein • 2nd flight scheduled in December • Spacecraft is WFF-built technology, Demo2 • Autonomous Flight Safety System • Low-Cost TDRSS Transmitter • Hypersonic Test Vehicle • Flight Test 3 & 4 scheduled from WFF • Probably launched on a Minotaur 1 in 2008

  27. NASA Exploration • WFF Mobile Range likely to provide the reentry tracking & data services for CEV return from orbit • WFF to manufacture components of the Low-Impact Docking System • WFF partnering with LaRC to demonstrate inflatable aeroshells as decelerators for atmospheric reentry • WFF may serve as launch site for high altitude CEV abort testing mission in 2012 • Lunar missions carrying landers and orbiting communications satellites may be launched on Minotaur V vehicles launched from WFF

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