Showing posts with label Dragon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dragon. Show all posts

Friday, July 22, 2016

Last Monday's Perfect SpaceX CRS-9 Launch And Landing In Pictures


Last Monday's commercial resupply mission to the International Space Station was a perfect night launch from Cape Canaveral, topped off by a successful return to launch site, which means SpaceX landed a Falcon 9 first stage back at the launch site, while the Dragon capsule it sent to orbit continued on to dock with the ISS. This landing marks the second time SpaceX has returned a rocket intact to a launch site on land. Rocketry doesn't get more picture perfect than this:
 

Image credit: SpaceX

Falcon 9 and its ISS-bound Dragon payload launch into the night sky in Florida...




Image credit: SpaceX



Image credit: SpaceX

...and then Falcon 9 returns to its launch site a few minutes after lift-off.
This picture shows the landing burn just before touchdown.




Image credit: SpaceX

The above long exposure image shows a familiar night sight on the Cape: a launch into orbit on the left. Not so familiar are the landing burn on the right and the re-entry burn visible at the center top of the image. Falcon 9 performs three burns to land: the boostback burn right after payload separation, which reorients the rocket in orbit in preparation for landing. This is followed by the re-entry burn. Spent rockets used to burn up in the atmosphere at this point. SpaceX's technological advances guide them back to Earth for re-use. The third and final burn occurs just before landing.
 


Image credit: SpaceX

Long exposure image of the launch and landing burn:
Falcon 9 returns to land next to the launch location.




Image credit: SpaceX

Launch, re-entry and landing burns with SpaceX signage at Cape Canaveral




Image Credit: SpaceX

SpaceX marks the spot: Falcon 9 just after it returned to the launch pad location




Image Credit: SpaceX

Dragon cargo capsule CRS-9, solar wings extended, approaches the ISS



After Dragon docked to the International Space Station on Thursday, NASA shared the following two tweets:










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Sunday, April 10, 2016

Dual Success For SpaceX


It's been a weekend of amazing successes for SpaceX. The private space company delivered its eighth Dragon resupply capsule to the International Space Station and stuck an experimental landing of the spent Falcon 9 booster rocket on a drone ship in the Atlantic. SpaceX has previously tried landing the first stage of a Falcon 9 used in missions. Both times, the rocket made it to its target on the drone ship, but failed to land upright, resulting in RUD events (rapid unscheduled disassembly).

This tweet from early Sunday morning, April 10, shows Dragon safely docked to the ISS Harmony module, next to an Orbital Sciences' Cygnus cargo craft and a Soyuz crew capsule on the lower right. In total, six spacecraft are currently docked to the International Space Station.




But let's go back to launch day, Friday, April 8, and take a look at all that SpaceX accomplished this weekend:


Image credit: SpaceX
Falcon 9 with its Dragon payload on the launch pad at Cape Canaveral


Image credit: SpaceX
Mission patch for SpaceX's eighth commercial resupply mission (CRS-8) to the International Space Station

If you look closely, you'll find the patch full of interesting details. For example, the eight stars in the design represent the eight missions to the ISS that SpaceX has flown so far, with one star dimmed out to symbolize last June's failed launch.



Image credit: SpaceX
Close-up of Dragon capsule atop Falcon 9, which stands over 200 feet (60 m) tall


Image credit: Space X
Graphic illustrating the stages of launch, landing and mission completion (click to enlarge)


The drone ship name in the above graphic is Just Read The Instructions. The ship on which Falcon 9 stuck its historic landing is Of Course I Still Love You.

The following trio of still pictures captured by SpaceX's chaser plane near the drone ship shows the landing's most breath-taking moments. This is the first time that SpaceX has successfully landed a rocket used in a mission on a drone ship at sea. The private space company previously succeeded at landing a Falcon 9 first stage on-shore.


Image credit: SpaceX

Image credit: SpaceX

Image credit: SpaceX

Whether Falcon 9's first stage lands on a drone ship or on shore after delivering a payload depends on several factors. Elon Musk explained some of them on Twitter.



Following are two tweets from SpaceX with landing video clips that were posted to the company's twitter account within hours of the landing.





Here is SpaceX's 36-minute launch and landing live webcast. About 30 seconds in, a legend appears at the bottom that lists the consecutive events being covered. It is well worth the time to review the launch and what SpaceX labeled "experimental landing". While the landing is one of the most jaw-dropping and certainly the most historic aspect of the CRS-8 mission, a successful landing was not the primary mission objective. That was getting a Dragon resupply capsule, including its important science cargo, safely to the International Space Station. SpaceX succeeded on both counts, with several cherries on top.

The reactions from employees at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, CA after the successful launch and landing on Friday say it all. Elon Musk and the team at SpaceX have mastered another crucial step towards routine usage of reusable rockets, drastically lowering the cost of reaching targets in orbit and beyond and making space more accessible than ever before. SpaceX plans to re-fly a used rocket within a few months.


Video credit: SpaceX
Live webcast from SpaceX's headquarters during Friday's successful launch to the ISS and landing on one of the company's drone ship.


Below is the Storify of my live tweets and conversations during Friday's pre-launch, launch and landing events, with some additional remarks for this blog post.

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Thursday, January 15, 2015

Falcon 9 Delivers Dragon, Just Misses Landing


On Saturday, January 10, SpaceX's Falcon 9 flagship rocket launched a supply capsule to the International Space Station for the fifth time under a commercial resupply contract with NASA. The night launch out of Cape Canaveral was flawless in its beauty. Capture (aka catch the dragon with a robotic arm on the ISS) and docking of the capsule went as planned. 


 Image credit: SpaceX / NASA
SpaceX's Dragon CRS-5 being grappled and docked by astronauts aboard the International Space Station, with a little help from Houston Mission Control.

  
The historic aspect of this mission - landing Falcon 9's upper stage on a barge using technology developed by SpaceX - fell just short of its goal. The rocket reached the drone ship in the Atlantic, but didn't land on point. It crashed and damaged structures on the ship. Still, considering the difficulty of precision-landing a used rocket on a ship in the ocean, it was a bold attempt, a first in the history of rocketry. SpaceX is optimistic they will stick the landing next time.

The technological leap that comes with reliable reusability technology is significant. Capsules that return to Earth have historically landed inside vast target zones, such as the ocean (Apollo) or the Russian tundra (Soyuz), using parachutes and braking rockets. The precise landing spot is uncertain and ground support teams must locate the capsule once it has splashed or touched down. Since the Space Shuttle retirement, these imprecise landings are the only option we have to return astronauts to Earth. Compare that to the precision inherent in landing on a 300-by-170 foot (90-by-50 m) barge, and eventually a pad on land. Yes, a rocket isn't reusable if it reaches a specific spot and crashes on it, but I'm certain SpaceX is on its way to getting it right.

Elon Musk, SpaceX's CEO, posted this series of tweets, with his characteristic understatement and humor:




















Update January 16, 2015: 

Late last night, Elon Musk released drone footage pictures of the almost-landing and its aftermath on twitter. These tweets appeared as @ replies to another user, so they are not as visible as his regular tweets and got somewhat less attention than usual. In addition, these images were released the same day as the announcement of the Hyperloop test track construction in Texas, which dominated yesterday's coverage of Elon Musk. Well played, Elon!













I would have called it "involuntary full conversion of an asset" but RUD is good, too! Of course this wouldn't be Elon Musk tweeting without this next tweet. Unlike the others above, it appears in his main tweet stream (not tweets & replies) so it got a lot more attention in terms of FVs and RTs:



A few hours ago, a video of the (crash) landing appeared in SpaceX's main tweet stream:





As someone who has previously critiqued media coverage of SpaceX and its CEO, I noted a change in the tone used by space and science writers to cover the rocket company and its CEO over the past year, and especially today. Gone are the diminutive references and labels of SpaceX as a "scrappy startup". In its place are grudging acknowledgments that SpaceX is, in fact, a major player in the industry, evidenced by descriptors of Elon Musk as, for example, "space boss". I predict this will become "industry leader" within a year.




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Tuesday, December 16, 2014

SpaceX's Jan. 10 CRS-5 Launch Includes Precision-Landing Upper Rocket Stage On Barge



Update - January 8: SpaceX's CRS-5 resupply mission to the ISS has been postponed to Saturday, January 10, 1:47 a.m. PST (10:47 CET) - a weekend night launch. I'm sure other West Coast night owls like myself will stay awake to watch and live tweet the launch, given the historic nature of this mission. NASA TV will provide live coverage, starting at 12:30 a.m. PST (9:30 CET). Details about this mission are below the Update sections.



Update - January 6: Today's launch attempt was scrubbed at the last minute due to a problem with an actuator assembly, a part of the rocket's second stage engine steering system. The next launch attempt is scheduled for Friday, January 9, at 2:09 a.m. PST (11:09 CET) - an almost reasonable time for us West Coast night owls. SpaceX is characteristically stingy with details; Elon Musk posted this tweet today:
 



Update - December 18: Due to issues with a static fire test this week, SpaceX has moved the launch date to January 6, 2015, at 3:18 a.m. PST (12:18 CET).





Delayed multiple times since September, SpaceX's cargo delivery to the International Space Station is scheduled for January 10, 1:47 a.m. PST (10:47 CET), launching a Dragon cargo capsule atop a Falcon 9 rocket from pad SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral. This mission will be the private space company's fifth cargo delivery to the ISS under NASA's Commercial Resupply Services contract. 

The mission is named CRS-5 and here is its patch. I like how the launch state of Florida is marked in a lighter blue color. Naturally, the traditional SpaceX clover leaf is there as well. What I like most about it is that Falcon 9 is practically bursting out of the confines of this beautiful patch, conveying anticipation, excitement and confidence in what's ahead. The Dragon capsule on the right has already found a way to escape its patch boundaries, but, hey, that lucky capsule is going to the International Space Station, so Dragon's impatience is quite understandable!


 


For SpaceX, CRS-5 is quite a bit more than another supply run to the ISS, as the company will further test re-usability functions and performance of its flagship Falcon 9 rocket. From its inception, SpaceX has aimed to make spaceflight more affordable and accessible. Reusable rocket stages are a crucial factor in the quest to develop rockets that are significantly cheaper to fly than their single-use counterparts. Notice the upside down V-shaped structures on the rocket in the patch - or, from a Trekkie's perspective, the Star Trek emblem-shaped structures affixed to this Falcon 9 stage. These are Falcon 9's landing legs for attempting a soft landing on a spaceport barge.

On a mission earlier this year, SpaceX began post-launch re-usability testing by guiding the Falcon 9's rocket stage to hover upright above the ocean for a few seconds before it tipped over sideways into the water. SpaceX uses a combination of landing legs, grid fins, retro rockets and stabilizing technologies, enabling Falcon 9's upper stage to perform a precision soft landing on water and eventually on land.

 This time, Falcon 9's upper stage is expected to land on an autonomous spaceport drone ship. On twitter, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk gave us a glimpse of what to expect on January 10 - a historic milestone never before achieved: precisely land and recover a rocket that is intact and reusable, without the need to fish it out of the water.









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Sunday, November 30, 2014

This Holiday Season..... Don't Miss These Launches!


Even though it's practically December that doesn't mean the year is winding down for spaceflight. On the contrary, it's going to be a busy month: Fourteen launches are scheduled for the month of December, roughly one every other day, and there are some you don't want to miss!


(No earlier than) December 2/3

Hayabusa 2 will launch on an asteroid sample return mission atop an H-2A rocket from Tanegashima Space Center, Japan. Hayabusa 2 is slated to rendezvous with asteroid 1999 JU3 in 2018 and tasked with returning a sample to Earth in 2020. This is JAXA's second asteroid sample retrieval mission. The first Hayabusa craft returned an asteroid sample to Earth in 2010. "Hayabusa" is Japanese for peregrine falcon.

If Hayabusa 2 launches on December 3, the launch time in the U.S. fill fall on December 2: 11:22 p.m. EST / 8:22 p.m. PST. Hayabusa 2 has been delayed twice due to weather. I will post updates here if the launch slips again. 


Image credit: JAXA




December 4

NASA is scheduled to launch its new Orion multi-purpose crew vehicle on its first uncrewed mission to space: Exploration Flight Test One (EFT-1). Orion marks NASA's return to human spaceflight and is widely expected to pave the space agency's path to crewed Mars landings and other deep space missions. 

A United Launch Alliance's Delta 4-Heavy rocket will carry the Orion craft to orbit. This is a heavy lift vehicle with a triple-body rocket that brings the power of the Saturn V from the Apollo era Moon landings back to the launch pad at Cape Canaveral in Florida. Orion will reach an altitude of 3,600 miles above Earth. For comparison, the International Space Station orbit is ca. 220 miles above Earth. The Space Shuttle, retired in 2011, was not capable of traveling beyond low Earth orbit.

Exploration Flight Test One will test many of Orion's critical systems, such as its heat shield that must withstand temperatures of 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit as re-entry speed reaches 20,000 miles per hour. Other Orion components to be tested during EFT-1 include the launch abort system and the parachute system that will help land Orion off the coast of California after completing two orbits.

The launch window for EFT-1 on December 4 is 7:05-9:44 a.m. EST / 4:05-6:44 a.m. PST. This is going to be rough on us West Coasters.


 Image credit: NASA
Update 2 - December 18: SpaceX CRS-5 launch moved up into the first week of January 2015. Click here for current updates and more info about the new launch date and time.  

Update 1 - December 16: Launch re-scheduled for December 19, 10:22 a.m. PST (19:22 CET)

December 16 (original date before re-schedules)

Delayed multiple times since September 12, SpaceX's cargo delivery to the International Space Station is now scheduled for December 16, launching a Dragon cargo capsule atop a Falcon 9 rocket from pad SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral. This mission will be the private space company's fifth cargo delivery to the ISS under NASA's Commercial Resupply Services contract. The mission is named CRS-5 and has a brief launch window: 2:31 p.m. EST / 11:31 a.m. PST.

 For SpaceX, CRS-5 is quite a bit more than another supply run to the ISS, as the company will further test the re-usability of its flagship Falcon 9 rocket. From its inception, SpaceX has aimed to make spaceflight more affordable and accessible. Reusable rocket stages are a crucial factor in the quest to develop rockets that are significantly cheaper to fly than single-use rockets. 

 On a mission earlier this year, SpaceX began post-launch re-usability testing by guiding the Falcon 9's upper stage (the rocket stage to be recovered) to hoever upright above the ocean for a few seconds before it tipped over sideways into the water. SpaceX uses a combination of landing legs, grid fins, retro rockets and stabilizing technologies to enable Falcon 9's upper stage to perform a precision soft landing on water and eventually on land.

 This time, Falcon 9's upper stage is expected to land on an autonomous spaceport drone ship. Last week on twitter, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk gave us a glimpse of what to expect on December 16 - a historic milestone never before achieved: precisely land and recover a rocket that is intact and reusable, without the need to fish it out of the water.




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Friday, May 2, 2014

Crimea River: Love Letter To SpaceX ~ Part 2



This article in Popular Mechanics is the third one I've seen that refers to SpaceX as "scrappy" in the aftermath of ULA having to face their business model's clash with ugly geopolitical realities. This time I'm not letting it go.

 Sure, ULA has enough Russian-built engines in stock that current sanctions against Russia won't affect ULA launch capability for a couple of years. But then what? It will cost ULA about a billion bucks and a couple of years to develop their own engine to replace the Russian imports - while SpaceX has already developed their own models and is using them successfully, right now. 

 Since September 2013, SpaceX has launched payloads into orbit four times, including the recent Dragon CRS-3 delivery to the ISS. More launches are planned this year. In the process, the company has hit several major milestones in the development of reusable upper stages that will return to the pad after launch. This technological leap alone is enough to leave ULA in the dust. ULA's business model doesn't even include re-usability. With $70-billion contracts at stake, it's no wonder that the Air Force and Congress are taking notice when SpaceX can offer significantly cheaper launch services without a limit of 10 per year that ULA works with.

While I was writing this post, SpaceX performed a 1,000-meter-reusability test flight in McGregor, TX, today, quadrupling the height of the previous test. Watch this video and get a glimpse of the future of space flight:






I wonder why the media reaction is so much one of surprise, even shock that this could happen. "But ULA worked so well and kept U.S. unmanned launch capability intact after the shuttle retirement in 2011!" Yes and yes, all that is true and a significant accomplishment, but also irrelevant in 2014. It's not like SpaceX just showed up on the scene yesterday. The company was founded in 2002 and has been on the fast track to reaching all of its goals and then some, ever since.    

So why did it take a federal injunction for ULA and Congress - along with most of the country's space writers, it seems - to take notice that SpaceX is not only successful but completely redefining the bars for cost, reliability, technological innovation and launch frequency? When space writers start talking about how only a SpaceX launch failure can save ULA, it's time for a reality check!    

That sort of thing is childish, offensive and it's a slap in the face of Elon Musk and all the people at SpaceX whose hard work and dedication came before all the recent successes. Outside of academia and the self-employed, I have never met people who work as hard and hours as long as SpaceX employees do - while loving their work and their employer! This is part of the formula behind SpaceX's success and it's time to acknowledge it!   SpaceX really is making it cheaper and easier to get into space more often! The company is targeting its first manned flight within three years, restoring U.S. manned launch capability. This is fantastic news and a huge cause for celebration!   How can you call a company like that "scrappy"?    

Part of the resistance to acknowledging SpaceX's success is likely rooted in the fact that from the outset, the private company deliberately did everything the way NASA most definitely did not. Love for the government space agency in this country runs deep and it is deserved. A business plan based on not doing things the NASA way, deliberately and consistently, is probably not the best way to win over NASA enthusiasts. Not that that is necessary for SpaceX's success. But it really would be nice, not to mention gracious, after 12 years of innovative technological and engineering feats.    

One of the things that SpaceX definitely does not handle the way NASA does is access. While I had been aware of SpaceX's local HQ for years, I never considered the possibility that I can get a tour just for the asking. Nicely, of course, and it helps to know an employee who offers. But really, if you want to go behind the scenes at SpaceX, all you need to do is ask.     

I visited a year ago and anyone who ever has would never put "scrappy" in the same sentence as "SpaceX". There are some rules, of course, (no photos) and some areas are off-limits but you can get up close and personal with rows of gleaming Merlin engines in different stages of assembly, Dragon capsules being assembled and prepped for launch, the first Dragon that's been to space on display, and the rocket assembly areas, which is exactly what it sounds like: Falcon 9 stages completed and under assembly.   And, of course, SpaceX's in-house 3D printer. It was the first time I'd ever been near one. Since then, the company has added tech that allows engineers to use hand gestures to design in 3D, and then immediately print the pieces in materials of their choice.     

A few 3D-printed pieces of titanium were on display. Most looked impressively intricate with impossibly tiny detail. The piece that drove home for me what I really was looking at, the true power inherent in this tech, came in the form of an innocuous-looking cylinder about 5 inches long and 3 inches in diameter. "What's this?", I asked, as it looked like an unremarkable piece of metal. "Hold it up to the light and look through the cylinder length-wise." I did. That was the third or fourth time I picked my jaw off the floor that day. I had lost count. The cylinder appeared semi-permeable: it had hundreds, maybe thousands of tiny shafts running the length of it, evenly spaced, fractions of a millimeter in diameter. Almost impossible to see with the naked eye until you hold the piece up to the light. 

I will never forget the moment when I realized what I was holding - a piece so finely machined that no machine could actually have done the job, except a 3D printer.   I call that impressive, awesome, inspirational - any number of adjectives nowhere near the meaning of "scrappy". So the next space or science writer I catch using the word in reference to SpaceX, or who invokes a SpaceX launch failure as a way to "save" ULA, is going to receive this tweet. It's not one of mine, but it does say it all:

  
 

Read my first Love Letter To Space X from May 2012.  I have a feeling this one won't be the last.   

 
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Thursday, August 29, 2013

Update: SpaceX's Falcon 9R / Cassiope Launch Viewing from Vandenberg AFB



Update - September 29, 1:00 pm. This morning's launch was absolutely beautiful - blue skies, great visibility, Falcon 9R climbing into the sky in a graceful arc, meeting all major mission objectives. 

Update - September 27 - 3:30 pm. Launch remains scheduled for this coming Sunday, September 29, with a 2-hour launch window that opens at 9 a.m. PDT. It's possible the launch could slip to Monday with the same launch window.

 I plan to watch from Providence Landing Park (697 Mercury Ave, Lompoc), just South of Vandenberg Village. 

Other viewing locations that have been suggested:  Floradale Ave., Harris Grade Road and Coral Road. A map with the exact pad location is included at the end of this article. 

Some of us launch chasers will meet at 7:30 a.m. on Sunday at Lompoc Donuts, 400 N H St in Lompoc before heading out to the viewing locations. Feel free to join.

The weather on both Sunday and Monday at Vandenberg looks good; clear, sunny days with 0% chance of rain and highs in the low- to mid-70s.

Icing on the cake: Here's the mission patch for Falcon 9R's maiden launch.



Image credit: SpaceX 
Mission patch for SpaceX's maiden launch of its flagship next generation Falcon 9 rocket, the company's first launch from Vandenberg AFB. 
Can you identify the meaning of all the elements?


Update - September 25, 2:30 pm. Info from SpaceX today confirms Sunday, September 29 launch date, with a 9-11 a.m. window. Specifically, SpaceX is saying that launch on Sunday is "likely", but cannot say exactly what time between 9 and 11. If Sunday's launch is scrubbed, another attempt can be made on Monday, September 30, 9-11 am. On both days, the launch window assumes "good weather".

Translation: This is the closest I've seen to a firm date being set for this launch since June, so I'm optimistic. At the same time, I'm making plans to be able to attend both a Sunday or Monday launch, keeping in mind that there may be a scrub on both days due to weather or other issues.


Update - September 23, 12:30 pm. I have created a Facebook Group for rogue tweetup / social attendees, feel free to join: https://www.facebook.com/groups/412619242176890/
I am Thalia Noir on FB. My real name is Claudia Taake, @ct_la on twitter.

Update - September 23, 11:00 am. spaceflightnow.com and Vandenberg AFB's launch schedule both list Sunday, September 29 as the launch date for SpaceX's Falcon 9R currently on pad SLC-4E at Vandenberg Air Force Base. The launch window is 9-11 a.m. PDT.

I recommend Providence Landing Park just south of Vandenberg Village as a viewing location. It is public, has parking, is elevated and about 10 miles from the pad. I am currently working on scouting out viewing locations closer to the pad and will post them here as the launch date approaches.

I am also organizing an informal post-launch tweetup / social for space geeks going to the launch who also follow this blog or my twitter / FB accounts. Anyone who'd like to join us is welcome. I'm currently considering a picnic at Providence Landing Park and a post-launch get-together at a local restaurant or cafe, or both. Please use the comments section below to let me know if you would like to participate or email me, ctaake23 at gmail.com. For a restaurant get together, I will need an approximate head count to make reservations. Feel free to make suggestions, especially if you're familiar with the area around VAFB. 

 If this launch is successful, SpaceX is planning to use facilities at VAFB for 30 launches over the next 5 year and we will finally have Space Coast West. SpaceX launches from VAFB may very well become regular occurrences in SoCal!

 If you are making travel plans, keep in mind that the launch date may slip again prior to next Sunday. This is a maiden launch that has been slipping since June. However, this time, the rocket is actually on the pad and has successfully completed its static fire test. 
This is a good sign!

 Scroll down for more info about this launch, the Cassiope satellite, pictures, videos and a map of the launch pad location. I've been updating this article for about a month now.


Update - September 20, 6:00 pm. SpaceX conducted its second hot fire test yesterday. It went off with all systems green for launch. The launch window opens on September 29/30. I will post updates here as soon as more info becomes available. In the meantime, here is a little preview video, showing yesterday's successful static fire.




Update - September 15, 3:45 pm. SpaceX did not conduct a second hot fire test yesterday. Early this morning, @elonmusk tweeted this update: 
 



Update - September 14, 2:00 pm. Thursday's hot fire revealed some issues that SpaceX is currently analyzing. Another hot fire is scheduled for today, Sept. 14, along with the Launch Readiness Review. Launch has been delayed from Sunday, September 15; all sources say "to be determined" at this time. I'm unsure if this means "a few days" or "maybe in a month or two". Usually, a launch happens within a week of a hot fire without issues. Since Falcon 9 v1.1 has a lot of new technology, it could go either way.  


Update - September 12, 7:00 pm. Today's hot fire test was successful! NASAspaceflight.com has an excellent, detailed summary: Falcon 9R hot fire  Launch is still targeted for this Sunday, Sept. 15, with a 9-11 a.m. launch window. There is a public viewing area at Providence Landing Park just South of Vandenberg Village, ca. 10 miles from SLC-4E. If you know of any other elevated, public viewing locations that are close, please share! Launch Readiness Review and Range approval is still pending. Hopefully, everything will continue to go as smoothly as today's test fire.  I'm getting excited to see SpaceX history being made at Vandenberg this weekend! Here are a few pics:

 
 Image credit: SpaceX


 Image credit: SpaceX
Images from today's hot fire test at Vandenberg AFB



Image credit: SpaceX
Falcon 9R on launch pad SLC-4E. 

 
Update - September 11, 6:00 pm. Pre-launch hot fire test scheduled for today has been delayed. No info yet on a launch delay. Launch on Sunday seems less likely. I will continue to post updates here.  

Update - September 10, 5:30 pm. Launch date has slipped from Saturday, Sept. 14 to Sunday, Sept. 15, with a launch window of 9-11 am PDT. A pre-launch firing test was originally scheduled for Sept. 7/8; it is currently scheduled for tomorrow, Wednesday, Sept. 11. Providence Landing Park (see Sept. 4 update below) is a good public viewing spot.  The Falcon 9R launch vehicle is the latest version of SpaceX's flagship rocket and contains quite a bit of new technology. For starters, it is 60% longer than the rockets SpaceX has previous flown into space. 

Click here for more details on the newest Falcon version. The upcoming launch is not only SpaceX's first launch of its largest rocket to date, it's also the private space company's first launch from its home state in CA. SpaceX has been building facilities at Vandenberg Airforce Base for some time (click here for more). The scheduled demo flight is SpaceX's first actual launch from VAFB. Below is a glimpse of the rocket in a tweet from SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. The fog swirling about is typical for the location in the summer. I like it ~ 
 



Update - September 4, 1:30 pm. Thanks to Annie Wynn @acwynn for pointing out Providence Landing Park just South of Vandenberg Village as a publicly accessible viewing location. It is located on high ground with good views to the west. The park is a little over 10 miles from SLC-4E.   

Update - September 4, 11:40 am. spaceflightnow.com has officially moved the launch date to Saturday, September 14. This confirms twitter buzz of a launch slip into mid-September. Soo... we may have a weekend launch. I've gotten an amazing level of interest in this launch via this blog post, enough to organize a #RogueTweetup (a meetup of space tweeps on launch day that is not organized by NASA). To stay updated, follow me on twitter (@ct_la), email me (ctaake23 at gmail.com) or leave a comment below. By now, it's pretty much a certainty that the beach viewing locations I describe below will be closed on launch day. If you have suggestions on viewing opportunities in the Lompoc area, please let me know. I will publish them here. It is my goal to find a public viewing location no further than 10 miles from the pad. In the meantime, Elon Musk chimed in on twitter.  Nothing like a good look at the rocket to give me launch butterflies ~
 
 

Update - September 2, 2 pm. I've had feedback that the launch may slip from the 10th into mid-September.   


Update - September 1, 12:40 pm. As of today, launch remains scheduled for September 10.  


Update - August 29, 7:40 pm. I've had feedback that the beach locations could be closed for the launch. That is possible; they have been open in the past during launches from other pads. Even without beach access the pad location is still a good one for off-base viewing. I will continue to collect info ahead of the launch and post updates. Space X's next launch is scheduled for Tuesday, September 10. Veteran launch chasers may have noticed that there is very little information circulating ahead of this launch. Upon the request of its client, SpaceX has, in fact, decided not to allow media access for this launch at VAFB. This also means no official socials or tweetups for us social media space geeks. Publicity around this launch has been sparse. I have collated here everything I know about the launch to date, including a prime public viewing site 3-4 miles from the launch pad! Rogue tweetup, anyone? I was actually not aware until a few days ago that Dragon was scheduled to lift off from Southern California and not Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The original September launch date was set for the 5th. As of today, both spaceflightnow.com and VAFB's launch schedule have moved the date to the 10th, with 9-11 a.m. PDT for the launch window. VAFB is listing both the date and time followed by a question mark.  


About the launch:  
Launch window: 1600-1800 GMT (12-2 p.m. EDT; 9-11 a.m. PDT)   
Launch site: SLC-4E, Vandenberg Air Force Base, near Lompoc, CA (details below).  
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the Cassiope satellite for the Canadian Space Agency. Cassiope carries a communications relay payload for a commercial digital broadcast courier service and an instrument to observe the Earth's ionosphere. The rocket will fly in the Falcon 9R configuration with upgraded Merlin 1D engines, stretched fuel tanks, and a payload fairing. Delayed from April, June 18, July 9 and Sept. 5.  The vehicle will carry the following satellites as secondary payloads:  CUSat 1 and CUSat 2 (Cornell Univ)  DANDE (Univ of Colorado at Boulder)  POPACS 1, POPACS 2 and POPACS 3 (Utah State Univ).
Sources:  spaceflightnow.com, http://www.spacearchive.info/vafbsked.htm  


Where to view the launch:  
If you can travel to Lompoc / VAFB on launch day, I have found a prime viewing spot. There are several challenges inherent in seeing a launch from Vandenberg. Mountainous terrain along the South of VAFB obscures views from the South. Low clouds and fog are common in the area, especially in the summer. The base is huge, extending along the coast around 12 miles. Launch pads are located throughout the base. If you don't know exactly where the launch pad is located, it's tough to find a good public viewing space ahead of time.  Finding the location of the launch pad, Space Launch Complex 4E, was tricky. It was used from 1963-2005 to launch Atlas and Titan rockets, and has been redeveloped since 2011 for use by SpaceX. Current base maps I found did not show SLC-4E as an active launch pad. Don't ask me what it took to find and verify SLC-4E's coordinates, but when I did, I got a nice surprise: It couldn't be in a better location for prime public viewing! Surf Beach and Ocean Beach Park, while located on VAFB, are publicly accessible with parking. Both are only about 3-4 (!) miles north of SLC-4E. From the beach locations, SLC-4E is not obscured by the mountain terrain at the South. The view should be extraordinary - however, do keep in mind the possibility of fog or low clouds. Still, if we can get that close to the launch, the very thrill of hearing and *feeling* it is worth the trip!  

Be prepared for limited to no cell reception and wi-fi. VAFB is a huge cell phone "dead zone" in my experience. I will do my best to live tweet the launch. I am heading to the beach location early in the morning on September 10 from West LA, with an arrival time in Lompoc before 9 a.m., driving back that afternoon. I still have room for one or two people in the car. Leave a comment or email me if you are interested.

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Location of Space Launch Complex 4E on Vandenberg Air Force Base. Surf Beach and Ocean Beach Park are public beaches accessible from nearby Lompoc.
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