Tuesday, March 6, 2018

SpaceX Marks 50th Falcon 9 Mission with Fabulous Midnight Blastoff of Hispasat Telecomsat: Photos


A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket streaks to orbit after launching from Space Launch Complex-40 (SLC-40) on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, FL at 12:33 a.m. EST on March 6, 2018, carrying the Hispasat 30W-6 telecomsat for spanish operator Hispasat.  Credit: Ken Kremer/SpaceUpClose.com/kenkremer.com



Ken Kremer  --   SpaceUpClose.com  --   6 Mar 2018

CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE STATION, FL – SpaceX marked the occasion of the 50th mission for the Falcon 9 rocket with a fabulous midnight blastoff of the Hispasat telecommunications satellite from the Florida Space Coast and deployment to orbit early today, Tuesday, March 6, to provide high definition TV, voice, and high speed internet connectivity to Spanish and Portuguese speaking regions across Europe and the Americas.  
The 50th SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket successfully lifted off at 12:33 a.m. EST (533 GMT, 633 Spanish time) from seaside Space Launch Complex-40 (SLC-40) on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, FL, with the giant sized 6 ton Hispasat 30W-6 communications satellite.
Under serenely calm and nearly cloud free nighttime skies the Falcon 9 came to life shortly after midnight local time and right at the opening of the two hour launch window, igniting its 9 Merlin 1D engines to generate 1.7 million pounds of liftoff thrust fueled by cryogenic liquid oxygen and RP-1 kerosene propellants.
The Falcon 9 roared off pad 40 and never looked back as it streaked to orbit during a live launch webcast broadcast by SpaceX.


A SpaceX Falcon 9 lifts off from Space Launch Complex-40 (SLC-40) on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, FL with the Hispasat 30W-6 telecomsat for spanish operator Hispasat at 12:33 a.m. EST on March 6, 2018.  The 6 ton satellite was delivered to orbit. Credit: Ken Kremer/SpaceUpClose.com/kenkremer.com

The launch wowed spectators and was easily visible for over 5 minutes owing to the almost immaculately clear skies that are a skywatchers and space enthusiasts delight.

The Falcon 9 delivered the Hispasat 30W-6 telecomsat for Spain to geostationary transfer orbit on Tuesday March 6. It will transmit HDTV, DTV and highspeed internet to Spanish and Portuguese language countries and regions in Europe, North and South America and north Africa.




“At 6 metric tons and almost the size of a city bus, it will be the largest geostationary satellite we’ve ever flow,” SpaceX CEO Elon Musk tweeted prior to launch.


As planned, the 6 ton bus sized  satellite separated from the second stage 33 minutes after liftoff and the power generating solar panels were unfurled.
“Successful deployment of Hispasat 30W-6 to a geostationary transfer orbit confirmed,” said the SpaceX commentator.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 lifts off from Space Launch Complex-40 (SLC-40) on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, FL with the Hispasat 30W-6 telecomsat for spanish operator Hispasat at 12:33 a.m. EST on March 6, 2018.  The 6 ton satellite was delivered to geostationary transfer orbit. Credit: Ken Kremer/SpaceUpClose.com/kenkremer.com
“This new satellite will allow us to meet the growing connectivity demand detected in the market,” said Carlos Espinós, CEO of HISPASAT, in a statement.

“In the hyperconnected world in which we live, access to quality broadband is an essential need for economic, social and even personal development, and this satellite fulfils this need in places other technologies cannot reach. Hispasat 30W-6 allows us to broaden capacity and services, while completing the current phase of the company's growth plan”.

SpaceX did not attempt to recover the first stage of the rocket by soft-landing n the drone ship due to rough seas with waves swelling to over 20 feet. Thus the recovery fleet and OCISLY drone ship remained berthed in Port Canaveral.
The orbit will now be raised over the next few weeks to position Hispasat 30W-6 at its final location at 30 degrees West in geostationary orbit while technicians conduct a spacecraft checkout .

Seperation of 30W-6 from Falcon 9 second stage. Credit: SpaceX



After the successful separation “manoeuvres began to position the new satellite at the point where the test phase will be carried out to make sure it is working properly, and which is scheduled to last several weeks. Once the tests have been passed, the satellite will be placed in its final orbital position at 30° West” said Hispasat in a statement.


The single stick SpaceX Falcon 9 had been raised erect to launch position at pad 40 early Monday, March 5.

The Hispasat 30W-6 telecommunications satellite was encapsulated inside the payload fairing.

And it’s a whooper sized satellite.

“Falcon 9 flight 50 launches tonight, carrying Hispasat for Spain,” tweeted SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.

“At 6 metric tons and almost the size of a city bus, it will be the largest geostationary satellite we’ve ever flown.”

The launch was delayed about a week from late February when a last minute issue arose with the fairing pressurization mechanism, which has now been resolved.

“The Hispasat 30W-6 satellite will be put into space by a SpaceX Falcon 9 launcher from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, after the fairing’s pressurization system incident was solved,” HISPASAT said in a statement released today.



The two stage 229-foot-tall (70-meter-tall) SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket delivered HispaSat 30W-6 to a geosynchronous transfer orbit for HISPASAT – which is “comprised of companies that have a presence in Spain as well as in Latin America, where its Brazilian affiliate HISPAMAR is based.”

HISPASAT is a world leader in the distribution and broadcasting of Spanish and Portuguese content, and its satellite fleet is used by important direct-to-home television (DTH) and high-definition television (HDTV) digital platforms, according to a company description.

After reaching its initial orbit it will be moved to its final orbital position, 30º West, where it will replace and broaden the capacity of Hispasat 30W-4.

It is equipped with 40 Ku-band transponders, 6 Ka-band beams and 10 C-band transponders.

Photo of Hispasat 30W-6 communications satellite built by SSL. Credit: SSL

The Hispasat 30W-6 telecomsat launched Tuesday “was manufactured by Space Systems Loral in Palo Alto (California) and involved the significant participation of the Spanish aerospace industry.”

The bus sized satellite weighs 6 metric tons.



This SpaceX Falcon 9 launch concluded  a back to back double header of launches in the span of just over 4 days!

This past Thursday, March 1, ULA opened the month with the stunning dinnertime liftoff of the 20 story tall Atlas V rocket carrying the 5.5 ton GOES-S next generation weather observatory to geosynchronous orbit for NOAA and NASA. Read out stories.



Watch for Ken’s continuing onsite coverage of NASA, SpaceX, ULA, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Orbital ATK and more space and mission reports direct from the Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

Stay tuned here for Ken's continuing Earth and Planetary science and human spaceflight news: www.kenkremer.com –www.spaceupclose.com – twitter @ken_kremer - ken at kenkremer.com

SpaceX Falcon 9 is poised for liftoff from Space Launch Complex-40 (SLC-40) on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, FL with the Hispasat 30W-6 telecomsat for Spain shortly after midnight on March 6, 2018.  Credit: Ken Kremer/SpaceUpClose.com/kenkremer.com
Up close view of the nose cone encapsulating Hispasat 30W-6 telecomsat with Hispasat logo launching on SpaceX Falcon 9 on March 6, 2018 just after midnight. Credit: Ken Kremer/SpaceUpClose.com/kenkremer.com

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