Live Broadcast of Satellite Launch

MonolithicX writes "International Launch Systems is launching AMC11, an Atlas II class rocket, this Wednesday May 19th from Cape Canaveral, FL. You can watch the live broadcast here, coverage begins at 5:25 EDT and launch is scheduled for 5:42pm. Interesting facts about the launch can be found in the news release."

Comments

And if you miss it this time

[Marxist Hacker 42]

There will certainly be several thousand more chances:

With a 100 percent success rate and 61 consecutive successful launches, the Atlas II family has a reliability record unmatched in the industry.

If I was going to spend several million to launch a Satellite, this would certainly be the system I'd use- and it's reliability means there will be live reruns of this for every launch until they can't make money launching satellites anymore.

Re:And if you miss it this time

[Marxist Hacker 42]

Atlas family has perfect record in 71 consecutive flights says the actual article as opposed to the press release- even more proof that this will happen again in the future.

So this will hardly be a unique show.

5:42pm EDT

[sjoplin]

That's 14:42 on the west coast, not a very good time for broadcasting something other than infomercials, soaps, and Judge Judy. If this is to increase awareness by other than those already interested, schedule a launch for when broadcasters could easily switch over only for the duration of the launch, such as during morning/midday/evening/latenight news broadcasts. Better yet, make a FOX special out of this.

Re:5:42pm EDT

[another_henry]

I do hope that was a joke.

You can't schedule a launch based on TV times. Even Judge Judy cannot trump the laws of physics... to get the satellite in the right spot in its orbit there is a narrow launch window.

More info

[travisbecker]

A small nitpick: AMC-11 is the payload, not the rocket.

A realtime status log is available at Spaceflight Now.

Travis

Launch window opens *52* minutes after the hour ..

[Hulkster]

The launch window actually open at 1752 EDT and is 174 minutes (a rather long one) until 2046 EDT (2152-0046 GMT).

And the rocket would properly be called AC-166.

This can all be seen at the SpaceFlightNow URL allready mentioned which is an EXCELLENT resource and really does have close to real-time updates when the bird is about to leave the pad.

LMAO

[Anonymous Coward]

The Atlas Centaur launch vehicle is manufactured and operated by Lockheed Martin Astronautics Operations (LMAO).

I wonder what's so funny about it.

Why a launch window?

[golo]

I understand that for some missions there are launch windows (interplanetary probes, space rendezvous), but I wonder why does the launch of a geostationary satellite limited to a time window? I would assume that the spot where you want to place the spacecraft stays 'stationary' relative to the launch site? What am I missing?
Thanks

Re:Why a launch window?

[another_henry]

The rocket doesn't go straight up to its geostationary position - indeed if it did go straight up it wouldn't achieve orbit at all, because it's only stationary in that it stays above a fixed point on the Earth's surface... the rocket still needs massive angular velocity. If you just go straight up from a point you don't get that. Kind of hard to visualise, I'm sorry my explanation isn't too clear... imagine you jumping into the air. (ignoring air resistance) You're no longer being pulled along and given angular velocity by contact with the ground, but you still have momentum in a straight line so you move very little with respect to the surface. If gravity were to suddenly disappear you wouldn't hover while the Earth spun beneath you, you'd carry on at a tangent instead. Point is, going straight up doesn't get you to orbit even if it's geostationary.

Besides all that, geostationary orbits must be above the equator, so it has to go a fair way south from Florida.

I'm not an expert at all on this, but I think that with geostationary satellites they usually put it in a parking orbit first which is roughly circuilar at a few hundred km altitude, then burn another stage for "geostationary transfer orbit", which has its perigee in LEO and apogee at the desired position. When the rocket reaches the full 35790km, the motor is fired again to raise the perigee and achieve a circular geostationary position.

The timing of all this is critical if you want to achieve geostationary orbit above a given point, although I suppose they could potentially leave it in parking orbit for a few hours until it was the right position for geostationary transfer.

Re:Why a launch window?

[another_henry]

By the way... for those interested, I highly recommend JPL's introduction to the Basics of Space Flight. It starts off very simple but by the time you get to the end you'll have a reasonable knowledge of the various concepts and systems involved in satellites and space probes.

Freefall is also an excellent source of information ;) ;)

Re:Why a launch window?

[golo]

Thank you for the info. I found this explanation on the launch window and the reasons they mention do not seem to apply to geo satellites. Also the wikipedia mentions "For trips into Earth orbit most any [launch] time will do". I suspect that the launch window for geo launches has more to do with weather and/or coordination than with orbital mechanics.

Re:Why a launch window?

[MurphyZero]

Weather has nothing to do with determining a launch window. It does make them wait and occasionally scrub a launch (wait till another day) Due to airspace issues, launches rarely reserve a launch window more than 4 hours long (I've never seen one). Since this is a geo launch, the orbit designed to get there with a minimum fuel use and time constraints. Given that, the launch window, in this case is only 3 hours long. I am watching it on local TV right now.

Sealaunch rox it.

[torpor]

They're like, the rocket company that comes out of nowhere, with the coolest launch platform hardware of any (bar perhaps Baikonur, I still get chills when I watch the Russkies roll one out...) launch service provider anywhere.

If I were richer and hadn't spent so much on servicing my frickin' sharks with frickin' lasers on their heads last month, I'd probably be buying up all the used oil platforms and gunged-out CDC-ribbon'ed cruise ships, set it all up on some newly formed oceanic shelf out in International Waters territory, and start my own damn rocket company ... only, now that SeaLaunch have already done it, it sorta steals a little of the panache of the whole thing, ya know?

Rockets!!!

Re:Launch window opens *52* minutes after the hour

[the real darkskye]

And the rocket would properly be called AC-166.

Great now those Anonymouse Cowheards are getting rockets named after them!

Re:Launch window opens *52* minutes after the hour

[MurphyZero]

It's actually for Atlas-Centaur. And the Atlas II rockets have almost flown out. LockMart will be flying the Atlas III and Atlas V in the future, built around a Russian designed engine.

Re:Launch window opens *52* minutes after the hour

[Hulkster]

Per SpaceFlightNow it looks like AC-166 scored its 72nd consectutive successful launch as it has released the AMC-11 satellite into a good order - Go Atlas! ;-)

P.S. In response to MurphyZero, yea, not a whole lotta Atlas II's left ... nor Atlas III's ... the future is the Atlas V family with the Russian RD-180 engines.

The launch was cool, but...

[yo303]

... that sure was the longest commercial for the aerospace industry that I've ever seen. It was about 20% launch coverage, and 80% ads, clips and interviews about the launch company and their customers.

yo.