|
|
EchoStar-16 - Launch Updates
Proton-M Launch Vehicle Information, Countdown Timeline, ILS Mission Archive
|
Proton launches with EchoStar-16 - Briz-M makes flawless Insertion |
November 21, 2012
|
|
A Proton-M/Briz-M Launch Vehicle blasted off from Launch Pad 39 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, at 18:31 on Tuesday to begin a 9-hour 12-minute mission for an overnight delivery of EchoStar-16 to its desired Geostationary Transfer Orbit. The Proton launcher did its job and the Briz-M Upper Stage assumed control of the flight to boost the stack into a low Earth Parking Orbit. Four additional upper stage burns followed to place the Payload into Geostationary Transfer Orbit with Spacecraft Separation occurring at 3:43 UTC on Wednesday.
With the Proton arriving at the Pad on Saturday and final pre-launch operations completed over the past few days, teams started the launch countdown early on Tuesday, local time. All pre-launch checks were completed as planned and revealed that the Proton Launcher and its Briz-M Upper Stage were in proper condition and in readiness for the long mission to deliver the Spacecraft to its targeted orbit. 11 hours and 30 minutes ahead of launch, countdown operations kicked off with the activation of the Guidance, Navigation and Control System of the launcher. At the same time, the Briz-M Upper Stage initiated its own Countdown Sequence to prepare for its long overnight mission. At T-8 hours, the Launch Pad was cleared of all non-essential personnel for Propellant Loading. The Proton Launcher was powered up at T-6 hours and 10 minutes. Proton-M Fueling began at T-6 hours and 622,075 Kilograms of Unsymmetrical Dimethylhydrazine Fuel and Dinitrogen Tetroxide Oxidizer were loaded into the vehicle’s tanks. Countdown activities continued on schedule and the vehicle was put through final re-configurations and checkouts. Teams made final launch vehicle and pad close-outs before the Proton Service Structure was rolled back to its launch position, at a safe distance to the rocket. With all personnel in their final launch positions, the last 45 minutes of the countdown began. The Master Sequencer was activated and the individual sequencers of Ground Support Equipment, the spacecraft, launcher and Upper Stage were aligned. At T-10 minutes, the spacecraft team verified that EchoStar was ready for liftoff and gave a GO for launch. |
*File Image* - Photo: Khrunichev
|
Going through an automated sequence during the final five minutes of the countdown, the Proton underwent Propellant Tank Pressurization and transferred to internal power and so did the Briz-M Upper Stage that started its own sequencer and sent a GO signal to the launcher. A final automatic launch vehicle readiness check occurred at T-3.1 seconds and upon completion of the poll, the ignition sequence was started by the Launch Vehicle.
2.5 seconds before blastoff, the six RD-253 main engines of the first stage soared up to full thrust, lifting the vehicle at T-0 to begin a short vertical ascent. The Proton made a thundering blastoff at precisely 18:31:00 UTC, lighting up the night skies over Kazakhstan. A few seconds after liftoff, the Proton pitched over to align itself with its precise ascent trajectory to meet its cutoff target.
The six engines of the first stage use hypergolic propellants, Unsymmetrical Dimethylhydrazine and Nitrogen Tetroxide, to provide a whopping liftoff thrust of 10,500 Kilonewtons. The first stage is 21 meters long and 7.4 meters in diameter, holding 419,000 Kilograms of propellants at liftoff to be consumed during the first two minutes of flight. Passing Maximum Dynamic pressure at T+1:02, the Proton continued its trip uphill until T+2 minutes when the first stage shut down and separated from the second stage that began its 3-minute 27-second burn.
2.5 seconds before blastoff, the six RD-253 main engines of the first stage soared up to full thrust, lifting the vehicle at T-0 to begin a short vertical ascent. The Proton made a thundering blastoff at precisely 18:31:00 UTC, lighting up the night skies over Kazakhstan. A few seconds after liftoff, the Proton pitched over to align itself with its precise ascent trajectory to meet its cutoff target.
The six engines of the first stage use hypergolic propellants, Unsymmetrical Dimethylhydrazine and Nitrogen Tetroxide, to provide a whopping liftoff thrust of 10,500 Kilonewtons. The first stage is 21 meters long and 7.4 meters in diameter, holding 419,000 Kilograms of propellants at liftoff to be consumed during the first two minutes of flight. Passing Maximum Dynamic pressure at T+1:02, the Proton continued its trip uphill until T+2 minutes when the first stage shut down and separated from the second stage that began its 3-minute 27-second burn.
*File Image* - Photo: Khrunichev
|
Stage 2 of the Proton is 14 meters in length and 4 meters in diameter, being loaded with 176,800kg of propellants that are consumed by four RD-120 engines that provide a total thrust of 2,400kN. Second stage flight was nominal and the third stage began its burn at T+5:27, successfully igniting its single RD-0212 engine and RD-0214 vernier, both providing a total thrust of 614 Kilonewtons. Twenty seconds into the third stage burn, the protective Proton Payload Fairing separated as the launcher had already left the dense portion of the atmosphere so that aerodynamic forces could no longer harm the satellite allowing EchoStar-16 to be exposed at this point in the flight. At T+9 minutes and 42 seconds, the third stage shut down and the Briz-M with its payload were separated.
Proton-M did its job well, adding another success to its record as the Upper Composite was placed onto its planned sub-orbital trajectory. The Briz-M coasted for a short moment to allow it to gain altitude before beginning a 7-minute 25-second burn to raise the orbit's perigee in order to achieve an orbital trajectory. |
The planned parking orbit was circular at 177 Kilometers inclined 51.5 degrees.
Briz-M has a liftoff weight of 22,170kg carrying nearly 20,000kg of propellants, the majority being carried inside the Auxiliary Propellant Tank of the vehicle. The S5.98 engine of the Briz-M supports multiple ignitions to reach a variety of orbits including Geostationary Transfer Orbit, GSO and Escape Trajectories. S5.98 provides 19kN of thrust.
This mission featured a total of five Upper Stage Burns to deliver the satellite to its desired transfer orbit. After a 49-minute coast phase, at T+1:07:43, Briz-M started its second burn, a 17-minute 30-second firing to increase the apogee of the orbit to 4,996 Kilometers along with a small increase in perigee to 267km. The next coast phase was 2 hours and 3 minutes in duration, setting the stage for the third burn of the vehicle starting at T+3:28:56 and continuing for 9 minutes and 37 seconds, followed by shutdown of the vehicle to jettison its Auxiliary Propellant Tank. APT jettison was at T+3:38:33. Just 90 seconds after APT jettison, the Briz-M began the fourth burn with a duration of 7 minutes and 40 seconds to boost the apogee above 35,000 Kilometers. A long, 5-hour coast phase followed to allow the vehicle to climb up to Apogee to begin the final burn of the flight to raise the perigee altitude by making a 4-minute and 35-second burn that also served as a phasing maneuver. This placed the vehicle in a 2,431.6 by 35,781.2-Kilometer Orbit with an inclination of 29.47 degrees. The Upper Stage made attitude maneuvers and released EchoStar-16 at T+9:11:46, just before 3:43 UTC on Wednesday.
“With the successful launch of EchoStar XVI, ILS Proton has launched five of the satellites in the EchoStar fleet. We are very proud to have served Echostar in their expansion over the past ten years,” said ILS President, Phil Slack.
This was Proton’s 382th Flight since the start of the Program back in 1965. It was the 76th ILS Proton Mission and the 7th ILS Launch of 2012. EchoStar-16 was the 5th EchoStar to ride to orbit aboard Proton and the 24th Space Systems/Loral Payload. For Payload and Mission Information, refer to the section below.
Briz-M has a liftoff weight of 22,170kg carrying nearly 20,000kg of propellants, the majority being carried inside the Auxiliary Propellant Tank of the vehicle. The S5.98 engine of the Briz-M supports multiple ignitions to reach a variety of orbits including Geostationary Transfer Orbit, GSO and Escape Trajectories. S5.98 provides 19kN of thrust.
This mission featured a total of five Upper Stage Burns to deliver the satellite to its desired transfer orbit. After a 49-minute coast phase, at T+1:07:43, Briz-M started its second burn, a 17-minute 30-second firing to increase the apogee of the orbit to 4,996 Kilometers along with a small increase in perigee to 267km. The next coast phase was 2 hours and 3 minutes in duration, setting the stage for the third burn of the vehicle starting at T+3:28:56 and continuing for 9 minutes and 37 seconds, followed by shutdown of the vehicle to jettison its Auxiliary Propellant Tank. APT jettison was at T+3:38:33. Just 90 seconds after APT jettison, the Briz-M began the fourth burn with a duration of 7 minutes and 40 seconds to boost the apogee above 35,000 Kilometers. A long, 5-hour coast phase followed to allow the vehicle to climb up to Apogee to begin the final burn of the flight to raise the perigee altitude by making a 4-minute and 35-second burn that also served as a phasing maneuver. This placed the vehicle in a 2,431.6 by 35,781.2-Kilometer Orbit with an inclination of 29.47 degrees. The Upper Stage made attitude maneuvers and released EchoStar-16 at T+9:11:46, just before 3:43 UTC on Wednesday.
“With the successful launch of EchoStar XVI, ILS Proton has launched five of the satellites in the EchoStar fleet. We are very proud to have served Echostar in their expansion over the past ten years,” said ILS President, Phil Slack.
This was Proton’s 382th Flight since the start of the Program back in 1965. It was the 76th ILS Proton Mission and the 7th ILS Launch of 2012. EchoStar-16 was the 5th EchoStar to ride to orbit aboard Proton and the 24th Space Systems/Loral Payload. For Payload and Mission Information, refer to the section below.
EchoStar-16 - Satellite Information
Image: Space Systems Loral
|
EchoStar-16 is a Direct Broadcast Service (DBS) commercial communication satellite manufactured by Space Systems Loral of Palo Alto, California and operated by the EchoStar Corporation. The Satellite is based on the flight proven LS-1300 Satellite Bus that is capable of hosting powerful communication payloads. It is equipped with 32 Ku-Band Transponders that will provide coverage of the United States of America. The vehicle features two deployable solar arrays and onboard batteries for power generation and storage.
EchoStar-16 features its own propulsion system for apogee maneuvers and stationkeeping in GSO. The bus is three-axis stabilized and the satellite has an expected service life of 15 years. EchoStar-16 has a liftoff mass of 6,650 Kilograms that include about 3,400kg of propellants. The vehicle will operate from an orbital position of 61.5 degrees west longitude in Geostationary Orbit. The spacecraft will be permanently leased to the DISH Network as part of its Direct-To-Home DTH services in the US. |
In addition to its Communications Payload, EchoStar-16 carries an art project entitled "The last Pictures". Trevor Paglen has created an ultra-archival disc, micro-etched with one hundred photographs and encased in a gold-plated shell. The Payload rides on the Anti-Earth Deck of EchoStar-16. For more about the project, visit its Creative Time Website.
Mission Information
Mission Timeline
Information Source: International Launch Services |
To deliver the EchoStar-16 Spacecraft to a nearly Geostationary Orbit, the Proton-M Rocket will perform a nominal ascent mission and deliver the Orbital Unit consisting of a Briz-M Upper Stage and the Payload, to a sub-orbital trajectory. The large Proton-M Rocket will launch from Pad 39 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. Separating after 9 Minutes and 42 Seconds, the Orbital Unit will start powered flight by igniting the Briz-M Main Engine to place itself in a Low-Earth Parking Orbit. In total, the Briz-M Upper Stage will make five Main Engine Burns separated by coast phases to increase its orbital altitude. After all burns are complete, the Satellite will be separated 9 Hours and 12 Minutes after Liftoff and start its own mission lasting for at least 15 years.
Map: International Launch Services
|
3. Transfer Orbit
|
| Perigee | 2,434km | |
| Apogee | 35,786km | |
| Inclination | 29.5° |
Rollout Photos
Photo: Khrunichev
|
Photo: Khrunichev
|
Photo: Khrunichev
Photo: Khrunichev
|
Proton-M at Launch Pad for Preparations ahead of Tuesday Liftoff |
November 18, 2012 |
Photo: Khrunichev
Photo: Khrunichev
|
An International Launch Services Proton-M/Briz-M Launch Vehicle is standing tall at its launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, beginning final preparations ahead of its planned launch on Tuesday to deliver the EchoStar-16 Payload to Geostationary Transfer Orbit.
On November 13, the Upper Composite consisting of the Satellite, its Briz-M upper stage and the protective Proton Payload Fairing, was installed on the three-stage Proton Rocket inside the 111 Launcher Integration Facility. Afterwards, final electrical testing took place and the fairing received its thermal insulation to help maintain stable temperatures under the fairing while the launcher is spending time outside in chilly Kazakh weather conditions. On November 15, the Proton was rolled to the Briz-M Fueling Station, where the upper stage was loaded with nearly 20,000kg of Unsymmetrical Dimethylhydrazine and Nitrogen Tetroxide Propellants. The Russian State Commission met on the 16th to review all statuses concerning the rocket, its payload and ground support elements such as communications systems to decide whether the launcher can be rolled out to the launch pad. The State Commission approved the Proton for rollout which took place on November 17, 2012. After arriving at the Launch Complex, the Proton was placed in its vertical launch position and the two halves of the Service Structure were moved in position around the vehicle to provide protection and access platforms for technicians. With Proton at Pad 39, teams are starting the nominal pre-launch operations. As part of On-Pad-Operations, the vehicle is put through extensive tests to ensure it is in proper condition and in readiness for its flight. Countdown operations will get underway on Tuesday to set the stage for liftoff at 18:31 UTC to begin a 9-hour 12-minute mission to GTO. |
Currently, all operations are on track for an on-time launch. This will be Proton’s 382th Flight since the start of the Program back in 1965. It will be the 76th ILS Proton Mission and the 7th ILS Launch of 2012. EchoStar-16 is the 5th EchoStar to ride to orbit aboard Proton and the 24th Space Systems/Loral Payload. For Payload and Mission Information, refer to the section below.
Proton prepares for next Commercial Satellite Launch
|
November 12, 2012 |
|
Taking up the pace of Russian Launches in November, an International Launch Services Proton-M Rocket with a Briz-M Upper Stage is planned to deliver the EchoStar-16 Satellite to Geostationary Transfer Orbit. Launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome is set for November 20, 2012.
The Launch Campaign at Baikonur started with the delivery of the Proton-M Launch Vehicle from its manufacturer, the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center. After being delivered to Baikonur, the vehicle was integrated inside the Launcher Integration Facility. After all three stages of the Proton-M were stacked, launch vehicle testing got underway to make sure the rocket was ready for its flight. The Briz-M Upper Stage also started its pre-launch processing flow. Briz-M Upper Stages are also built by Khrunichev. On October 16, 2012 the EchoStar Satellite arrived at Baikonur for final testing and preparations. The Antonov An-124 Aircraft with the satellite on-board, touched down at the Юбилейный (Jubilee) airport after a safe transport from its manufacturer, Space Systems/Loral, USA. After delivery to Baikonur, EchoStar was unpacked and placed in a test stand inside the 92A-50 Spacecraft Processing Facility at Baikonur. The Spacecraft underwent final integration tasks and inspections before completing hazardous processing inside the 91A facility where the satellite was fueled for flight. On November 8, the EchoStar Satellite was installed on its Briz-M Upper Stage with electrical and structural connections being made between the two vehicles. Over the weekend, the stack was encapsulated in the protective Proton Payload Fairing. Additional electrical checks and inspections were made and the unit was rolled to the 111 Launcher Integration Facility. Over the next few days, the upper composite will be attached to the launch vehicle and final electrical checks will be performed. When the integration process is complete, final vehicle preparations will get underway to set the stage for the Rollout of the Vehicle. |
Photo: Khrunichev
Photo: Khrunichev
|
 |
