SPACECRAFT AND EXPENDABLE VEHICLES STATUS REPORTNovember 20, 2002
MISSION: Tracking and
Data Relay Satellite-J (TDRS-J) LAUNCH VEHICLE: Lockheed
Martin Atlas IIA (AC-144) LAUNCH SITE: Pad 36-A, Cape
Canaveral Air Force Station LAUNCH DATE: December
4, 2002 LAUNCH WINDOW: 9:42
– 10:22 p.m. EST
The TRDS-J
spacecraft is undergoing final checkout at the Spacecraft Assembly Encapsulation
Facility-2 in the KSC Industrial Area. Spacecraft mating to the payload adapter
is scheduled for Nov. 20. Encapsulation of the spacecraft into the Atlas IIA
payload fairing is scheduled for Nov. 21. The TDRS-J spacecraft will go to the
pad on Nov. 23 where it will be mated to the launch vehicle. At Pad A on Launch Complex 36, the final major test
will be the Composite Electrical Readiness Test (CERT) on Nov. 25. This will
verify that the vehicle and spacecraft are operating in an integrated manner. NASA and
Lockheed Martin have cleared the RL-10 turbo pump for AC-144 flight. No further
action on this issue is required prior to AC-144 launch. MISSION: Ice, Cloud and Land Elevation Satellite
(ICESAT)/Cosmic Hot Interstellar Plasma Spectrometer (CHIPSAT) LAUNCH VEHICLE: Delta II with Reduced-Height Dual
Payload Attach Fitting (RH DPAF) LAUNCH SITE:
SLC-2W Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB) LAUNCH DATE:
December 19, 2002 LAUNCH WINDOW:
4:45 – 5:30 p.m. PST At the Astrotech
Space Operations Payload Processing Facility, ICESAT battery conditioning was
completed on Nov. 16. The two-day spacecraft fueling operation is in progress.
ICESAT mating to its Payload Attach Fitting (PAF) is scheduled for Nov. 20. The
ICESAT and upper PAF will then be mated to the Dual Payload Attach Fitting
(DPAF) cone on Fri., Nov. 22. The
Geoscience Laser Altimeter System functional test and a solar array
illumination test have been successfully completed. The instruments on ICESAT
have been developed by the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP)
under a contract with NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD. Also at
Astrotech, CHIPSAT has successfully completed spacecraft functional testing.
The Payload Adapter Assembly and Payload Adapter Fitting were installed onto
the spacecraft Nov. 8. CHIPSAT mating to the Reduced-Height Dual Payload Attach
Fitting (RH DPAF) was completed on Nov. 12. Mating of the upper cone/cylinder
to the lower cone of the RH DPAF was completed on Nov. 13. Meanwhile,
at Space Launch Complex 2, the power-on testing of the Boeing Delta II was
completed successfully. The Boeing Crew Certification (Crew Cert) and liquid
oxygen loading was completed on Nov. 14. This was a countdown to exercise the
launch team and the first stage while loaded with liquid oxygen. The main
propulsion system lead checks were completed on Nov. 15. A simulated Flight
(Sim Flight), which is a flight test of the vehicle’s electrical and mechanical
systems, was completed on Nov. 18. There are no
issues or concerns with the two spacecraft or the Boeing Delta II launch
vehicle. Launch is on schedule for Thurs., Dec. 19 at 4:45 p.m. PST. MISSION: Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment
(SORCE) LAUNCH VEHICLE: Pegasus XL LAUNCH LOCATION: Cape Canaveral Air Force Station LAUNCH DATE:
January 25, 2003 LAUNCH WINDOW:
3:10 p.m. – 4:08 p.m. EST The three
stages of the Pegasus launch vehicle have been de-mated. The electrical boxes
containing the fasteners associated with the fin actuators and the thrust
vector control system have been removed and returned to the vendor. The
fasteners will be re-torqued and undergo environmental and vibration testing.
They will be returned to Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., for reinstallation
on the vehicle this week. The stages will be re-mated the first week of
December and will be followed by a set of flight simulations. The Combined
Systems Test is currently scheduled to occur on Dec. 15. The ferry to KSC,
using the Orbital Sciences L-1011 aircraft, is anticipated for the third week
of December, and expected to occur no later than Dec. 21. Three Flight
Simulation tests are also planned at KSC prior to launch. Processing
of SORCE, built by The Orbital Sciences Space Systems Group, has been going
well since its arrival at KSC on Oct. 26. Due to launch delay, no work has been
conducted over the past week but will resume on a limited basis next week.
There are no spacecraft issues or concerns. The SORCE
project is managed by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. The instruments on
the SORCE spacecraft are built by the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space
Physics (LASP).
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