Wallops Launched Cancelled for Tonight

Thanks to my old friend Keith Stein and the Scan-DC listserv:

NASA has scrubbed tonight's launch attempt for the ATREX mission
because of a payload problem. Next attempt no earlier than Friday night.

Mission information:
http://www.examiner.com/dc-in-washington-dc/video-nasa-studies-earth-s-high-altitude-super-wind-from-virginia

Details on Tonight's Five ATREX/Cloud Release Launches from Wallops

Courtesy of Cmdr Jaycee and the Seesat-L listserv

For those along the US East Coast, NASA is planning to launch five Terrier - Malemute sounding rockets over a five minute span tonight (sometime between midnight to 1:30 AM, EDT) from Wallops Island, Virginia.

"As part the mission, the five rockets will release a chemical tracer that will form milky, white clouds that allow scientists and the public to “see” the winds in space. These clouds may be visible for up to 20 minutes by residents from South Carolina to southern New Hampshire and Vermont."

For more, see:

NASA Jet Stream Study Will Light up The Night Sky
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/sunearth/missions/atrex-nightlight.html

NASA - Anomalous Transport Rocket Experiment (ATREX)
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/sunearth/missions/atrex.html

NASA to Launch 5 Rockets to Study Jet Stream | ATREX Mission | Space.com
http://www.space.com/14792-nasa-5-rocket-launches-edge-space.html

Next Shuttle launch Set for April 5

http://www.floridatoday.com/content/blogs/space/2010/02/nasa-targets-april-5-launch-date-for.shtml

NASA is targeting the launch of Discovery on its next shuttle mission to the International Space Station for April 5, a day after a new crew is scheduled to arrive at the outpost aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft.

Discovery and seven astronauts would blast off from launch pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center at 6:27 a.m. that day, the middle of a 10-minute, predawn opportunity to put the shuttle on course for a two-day trip to the station.

Discovery had been set to launch March 18. But unusually cold weather, which can damage shuttle steering thrusters, has prevented NASA from moving the orbiter from its processing hangar to the Vehicle Assembly Building.

The Spaceflight Website to Host Shuttle Launch Video Coverage

Spaceflight Now will be joining forces with veteran space broadcasters Miles O'Brien and David Waters to provide video coverage of space shuttle Discovery's next mission, scheduled for launch on Wednesday, March 11.

More details are available at http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts119/090305broadcast/

You can get more details on the mission at http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts119/090304date/

Progress M-61 Launch Announcement

Photo courtesy of Jacques in Houten, The Netherlands, and the Russian launchers discussion forum on NASA Spacefilght.com.

Russian has launched a Progress cargo vehicle that will dock with the International Space Station (ISS) Pirs module on August 5.

The cargo craft is carrying 2.5 tons of foodstuffs, water, fuel, equipment for the International Space Station and presents from the Earth for the crew of Russian cosmonauts Fedor Yurchikhin and Oleg Kotov, and NASA astronaut Clayton Anderson. The equipment includes six new computers for the Russian segment of the ISS, which failed in mid-June."

Name: Progress M-61
International Designator: 2007-033A
SSC#: 32001
Launch Date/Time: August 2, 2007 at 1733 UTC.
Launch Site: LC1 - Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan
Launcher: Soyuz-U
Orbital Inclination: 51.628 deg
Apogee/Perigee: 250 x 230 km

Shuttle Launch Delayed

Hail Damage Forces Shuttle Atlantis Off Launch Pad

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA decided Tuesday to roll the space shuttle Atlantis off its launch pad and back inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center. Managers made the decision after a hail storm Monday damaged the orbiter’s External Tank. A new target launch date has not been determined, but teams will focus on preparing Atlantis for liftoff in late April.

On Monday, a severe thunderstorm with golf ball-size hail caused what could be 1,000 to 2,000 divots in the giant tank's foam insulation and minor surface damage to about 26 heat shield tiles on the shuttle's left wing. Further evaluation of the tank is necessary to get an accurate accounting of foam damage and must be done in the Vehicle Assembly Building, where the entire tank can be more easily accessed. The shuttle is expected to be moved off the pad by early next week.

Once an up-close look at the damage is complete, the type of repair required and the time needed for that work can be determined. Atlantis' flight, STS-117, to the International Space Station will be scheduled sometime after a Russian Soyuz spacecraft returns from the station. The Soyuz is delivering new station crew members and returning others back to Earth in late April. Adequate time is needed between the Soyuz undocking and the shuttle's arrival to the station.

STS-117 Commander Rick Sturckow, Pilot Lee Archambault and mission specialists Jim Reilly, Patrick Forrester, Steven Swanson and John "Danny" Olivas will continue training at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston, as they await a new target launch date. During the 11-day mission, the astronauts will work with the station crew and ground teams to install a new truss segment, unfold a new set of solar arrays and retract one array on the starboard side of the station.

Space Shuttle Program managers are gathered at the Kennedy Space Center for the traditional Flight Readiness Review for the mission. During the two-day meeting, NASA managers and engineers assess any risks associated with the mission and determine whether the shuttle's equipment, support systems and procedures are ready for flight. The meeting, scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, will continue as planned.

Boeing Satellite Launch Schedule

Here is the latest Boeing Satellite Payload Launch Schedule:

Satellite Model Owner Launch Date Launch Vehicle
NSS-8 702 New Skies Satellite 2007/DIO Sea Launch
WGS-F1 702 U.S. Air Force 2007 Delta IV
WGS-F2 702 U.S. Air Force 2007 Atlas V
GOES O 601 NASA/NOAA 2007/DIO Delta IV
Spaceway F3 702 Hughes Network Systems 2007/DOG Sea Launch
Thuraya-D3 702 Geo-Mobile Thuraya Satellite Telecommunications 2007/DIO Sea Launch
DIRECTV 10 702 DIRECTV, Inc. 2007/DOG Proton
DIRECTV 11 702 DIRECTV, Inc. 2007/DOG Sea Launch
DIRECTV 12 702 DIRECTV, Inc. Ground Spare TBD
GPS IIF SV-1 GPS U.S. Air Force 2008 Atlas V
WGS F-3 702 U.S. Air Force 2008 Atlas V
GOES P 601 NASA/NOAA 2008/DIO Delta IV
GPS IIF SV-2 GPS U.S. Air Force 2009 Delta IV
GPS IIF SV-3 GPS U.S. Air Force 2009 Atlas V
GPS IIF SV-4 GPS U.S. Air Force 2009 Atlas V
GPS IIF SV-5 GPS U.S. Air Force 2009 Delta IV
MSV-1 702 Geo-Mobile Mobile Satellite Ventures 2009/DIO TBD
MSV-2 702 Geo-Mobile Mobile Satellite Ventures 2010/DIO TBD
GPS IIF SV-6 GPS U.S. Air Force 2010 Atlas V
GPS IIF SV-7 GPS U.S. Air Force 2010 Atlas V
GPS IIF SV-8 GPS U.S. Air Force 2010 Atlas V
WGS-F4 702 U.S. Air Force 2011 EELV
GPS IIF SV-9 GPS U.S. Air Force 2011 Delta IV
GPS IIF SV-10 GPS U.S. Air Force 2011 Delta IV
GPS IIF SV-11 GPS U.S. Air Force 2011 TBD
WGS F-5 702 U.S. Air Force 2012 EELV
GPS IIF SV-12 GPS U.S. Air Force 2012 TBD
WGS F-6 option 702 U.S. Air Force 2013 EELV
MSV-SA 702 Mobile Satellite Ventures TBD TBD

DIO -- Delivery in Orbit
DOG -- Delivery on Ground