Atlas wyniósł trzy satelity 18.05. o 17:37 z Cape Canaveral wystrzelona została RN Atlas-5/421, która wyniosła w T+15' 06" na orbitę o parametrach: hp=176 km, ha=4535 km, i=26,17° satelity TDO-3 i TDO-4, a w T+34' 27,5" na orbitę o parametrach: hp=925 km, ha=35753 km, i=21,14° satelitę SBIRS-GEO 5 (Space Based Infra Red Sensor - Geostationary).
http://lk.astronautilus.pl/n210516.htm#01https://twitter.com/torybruno/status/1394806196004139017https://twitter.com/ulalaunch/status/1394782480541102084Atlas V launches SBIRS GEO-51467 wyświetleń•18 maj 2021
Photos: ULA’s Atlas 5 rocket lifts off from Cape CanaveralMay 19, 2021 Stephen Clark
Credit: United Launch Alliancehttps://spaceflightnow.com/2021/05/19/photos-ulas-atlas-5-rocket-lifts-off-from-cape-canaveral/Atlas 5 rocket launches infrared missile detection satellite for U.S. Space ForceMay 18, 2021 Stephen Clark
Artist’s concept of a SBIRS satellite in geosynchronous orbit. Credit: Lockheed Martin(...) The infrared payload on the SBIRS satellites can detect the hot exhaust plumes from missile launches around the world, giving U.S. and allied forces early warning of an attack. Heading for an orbital perch more than 22,000 miles (nearly 36,000 kilometers) over the equator, the SBIRS GEO 5 satellite launched Monday debuted new improvements over the previous block of four SBIRS satellites.
“SBIRS capability really remains an on-orbit guardian for us against global ballistic missile threats,” said Col. Erin Gulden, mission director for the SBIRS GEO 5 mission at the Space Force’s Space and Missile Systems Center, which manages procurement of military satellites. (...)
The Centaur upper stage then released two suitcase-size secondary “Technology Demonstration Orbiter” payloads named TDO 3 and TDO 4 for the U.S. Air Force Academy. Military officials said the two small satellites carry experimental payloads, but they did not disclose any additional details. (...)
https://spaceflightnow.com/2021/05/18/atlas-5-rocket-launches-infrared-missile-detection-satellite-for-u-s-space-force/ULA Kicks Off Busy Atlas V Manifest with SBIRS GEO-5 LaunchBy Ben Evans, on May 18th, 2021
A United Launch Alliance Atlas V ‘421’ rocket lifts off with SBIRS GEO-5 for the U.S Space Force on May 18, 2021. Photo: Mike Killian / AmericaSpace.com(...) “The world is a more threatening place now with more than 1,000 ballistic missile launches occurring globally every year,” said Tom McCormick, vice president of Lockheed Martin Space’s OPIR Mission Area. “SBIRS is the tip of the missile defense spear, seeing all those missiles and providing our military the ability to ensure our national security and the safety of our armed forces.” (...)
Two earlier missions with similar designators, TDO-1 and TDO-2, rode aboard Atlas Vs in August 2019 and March 2020, alongside the second-to-last and last Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) military communications satellites. The two missions focused upon a range of orbital debris tracking and space domain awareness functionality tasks. (...)
https://www.americaspace.com/2021/05/18/ula-kicks-off-busy-atlas-v-manifest-with-sbirs-geo-5-launch/#more-164929ULA launches U.S. Space Force missile-warning satellite, two rideshare cubesatsby Sandra Erwin — May 18, 2021
(...) Gary Wentz, ULA’s vice president of government and commercial programs, told reporters the RL10 C-1-1 is a higher performance engine than the RL10 C-1 flown in previous Atlas 5 missions. He said this was the first operational mission for the RL-10 C-1-1 that has a 3D-printed core main injector. The engine will power the upper stage of ULA’s next-generation rocket, the Vulcan Centaur.
This was the first launch of 2021 for the Atlas 5 and the 87th overall. Atlas 5 launched the first four SBIRS GEO satellites in 2011, 2013, 2017 and 2018. SBIRS GEO-6 also will launch on an Atlas 5 rocket.
Wentz said the company is building a larger aft bulkhead for Vulcan’s Centaur 5 upper stage so it’s able to carry more secondary payloads. (...)
https://spacenews.com/ula-launches-u-s-space-force-missile-warning-satellite-two-rideshare-cubesats/Here are some statistics on this afternoon’s mission:669th launch for Atlas program since 1957
371st Atlas launch from Cape Canaveral
258th mission of a Centaur upper stage
235th use of Centaur by an Atlas rocket
504th production RL10 engine to be launched
1st RL10C-1-1 engine launched
93rd flight of an RD-180 main engine
128th-129th AJ-60 solid rocket boosters flown
87th launch of an Atlas 5 since 2002
33rd U.S. Air Force/Space Force use of an Atlas 5
72nd launch of an Atlas 5 from Cape Canaveral
1st Atlas 5 launch of 2021
129th Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle flight
144th United Launch Alliance flight overall
79th Atlas 5 under United Launch Alliance
103rd United Launch Alliance flight from Cape Canaveral
55th 400-series flight of the Atlas 5
8th Atlas 5 to fly in the 421 configuration
99th launch from Complex 41
72nd Atlas 5 to use Complex 41
16th orbital launch overall from Cape Canaveral in 2020
https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2021/05/sbirs-geo-5/SBIRS-GEO 5
https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/sbirs-geo-5.htmTDO 3 (EZ 3)
https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/tdo.htmTDO 4 (EZ 4)