Air Liquide is battling a shortfall of the needed amounts of nitrogen to fully support the USSF-67 launch of a Falcon Heavy rocket from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. While workarounds were in place, the launch of the USSF-67 mission has slipped to Sunday, Jan. 14 with a window opening at 5:56 PM EST (22:56 UTC).
Sources note to NASASpaceflight that the nitrogen issue was briefed by SpaceX at the L-2 day Launch Readiness Review, which was held Friday, Jan. 13.
In the review, sources note that a capacity problem at Air Liquide existed for Saturday’s launch attempt, with a solution to tie trailers filled with nitrogen into the overall nitrogen loop on base to augment the available supply.
The issue at Air Liquide is the second such occurrence with the nitrogen supply to the space center within a year. A very visible and notable issue in 2022 played a large role in the delay of the SLS rocket’s Wet Dress Rehearsal campaign.
The plan put in place for Saturday’s Falcon Heavy launch involves tying trailers of nitrogen into the main nitrogen loop – which runs up from the VAB out to the LC-39 pads before turning south to service Launch Complexes 41, 40, and 37.
In addition to tying in trailers, base operations also have the option to isolate specific portions of the loop to help provide the needed supply of nitrogen for Falcon Heavy.
The mission
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Tonight’s Falcon Heavy flight is designated USSF–67 (United States Space Force 67) and will carry two payloads for the Space Force directly into geostationary orbit (GEO).
The primary payload is the Continuous Broadcast Augmenting SATCOM 2 (CBAS-2) satellite, while the secondary payload is the Long Duration Propulsive ESPA – 3A (LDPE-3A) platform.
CBAS-2 is the second CBAS-series satellite for the US Space Force. The first was launched on a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket on April 14, 2018, as part of the AFSPC-11 mission.
Originally under Air Force jurisdiction, CBAS is now part of the US Space Force following the branch’s formal addition to the US armed services in 2019.
Very little is known about CBAS other than its role in augmenting existing military satellite communication capabilities and continuously broadcasting military data through space-based satellite relay links.
LDPE-3A render. (Credit: Northrop Grumman.)
Meanwhile, LDPE-3A is the third and understood to be last LDPE-style mission, with future flights of similar platforms taking the designation ROOSTER (Rapid On-orbit Space Technology Evaluation Ring).
The previous two LDPE missions launched on STP-3 in December 2021 and USSF-44 in November 2022.
This LDPE mission will host five payloads: catcher and WASSAT for Space Force’s Space Systems Command (SSC) and the first three payloads for the US Space Force Rapid Capabilities Office.
According to the Space Force, the three Rapid Capabilities Office payloads include two operational prototypes for enhanced situational awareness and an operational prototype crypto/interface encryption payload providing secure space-to-ground communications capability.
Meanwhile, catcher is a low Size, Weight, Power, and Cost (low-SWaP-C) sensor that masses just 4 kg and has a dimension of 15 cm x 18 cm x 10 cm. It uses 9W of power.
This technology demonstration will help test new ways of characterizing both the natural and human-made congested space environments.
Hello Heavy!
Launch engineers are in final preps to raise Falcon Heavy vertical ahead of the USSF-67 mission. The weather looks good for a window open of 5:55 pm ET tonight.
Join the conversation in the @NASASpaceflight forums:https://t.co/WuN9M79hs3 pic.twitter.com/tQgWkHrByx
— Julia Bergeron (@julia_bergeron) January 14, 2023
Catcher is designed as a rapid response detection system that can keep up with the changing debris and environmental threat environment in space.
On this mission, catcher will test a laser sensor capable of counting laser pulse impingement from 532, 1064, and 1550 nm, a microwave sensor capable of counting microwave pulse impingement in the 5 – 18 GHz range, an impact sensor to monitor the acoustic environment created from debris impacts, and a radiation dosimeter to properly categorize radiation anomalies in orbit.
If successful, catcher-like devices could be deployed on numerous spacecraft in a variety of orbits to help create better situational awareness of the space environment around Earth.
Finally, WASSAT is a “prototype sensor for Geosynchronous satellite belt stare collections,” according to a Sandia SSA R&D presentation available from the US Department of Energy.
While brief, the presentation notes that four COTS (commercial off the self) EO (electro-optical) cameras will provide 20 to 80 degrees of coverage.
WASSAT will primarily be used as a cueing sensor for Phase I anomaly detection while testing data collection and storage processes, data transmission to GEODSS (Ground-based Electro-Optical Deep Space Surveillance) Test Bed, anomaly message data population, and algorithm tests.
Falcon Heavy only just went vertical. KSC folks are being told that SpaceX is going to miss today’s launch window. Awaiting an official update. @NASASpaceflight pic.twitter.com/T7w4ockdk3
— Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) January 14, 2023
Falcon Heavy
USSF-67 will be the fifth flight of SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket, and the second in just over two months.
Falcon Heavy stands 70 meters tall and is 12.2 meters in diameter will all three first-stage boosters. The rocket masses 1.4 million kg at liftoff, producing a thrust of approximately 22,241 kN from its 27 Merlin 1D engines.
The rocket is capable of delivering 63.8 tonnes to low Earth orbit and 26.7 tonnes to geostationary transfer orbit.
Given the total satellite mass on this mission, the full capabilities of the Falcon Heavy to insert the payloads directly into geostationary orbit (GEO) is not needed.
This allows enough propellant to be reserved in the side boosters for them to make Return To Launch Site landings at Cape Canaveral. The brand-new center booster, B1070, will be expended into the Atlantic.
The two side boosters on this mission are B1064 and B1065, both making their second flights after debuting the USSF-44 Falcon Heavy mission in November 2022. Their landings will mark the 174th and 175th Falcon recovery attempts.
The gray stripe on the second stage helps the propellants remain at the correct temperatures during the multi-hour coast phase on direct GEO insertion missions. (Credit: Thomas Burghardt/NSF)
After the first stage separates, the second stage will conduct a series of burns over the following six hours.
The first burn will take the second stage and payloads into an initial low Earth parking orbit. A brief coast to equatorial latitudes will take place, at which point the second stage will fire its engine again, throwing the apogee of the orbit out to a near-geostationary orbital altitude of approximately 35,786 km while also starting to lower the orbital inclination down from 28.5 degrees.
An approximate five-and-a-half hour coast will follow, at which point the second stage and payloads will reach apogee and the second stage will reignite its engine to circularize the orbit and finish lowering the orbital inclination to near zero.
Following payload deployment, SpaceX will perform a series of maneuvers with the second stage.
The first moves the stage into a slightly higher-than-geostationary orbit, known as the GEO graveyard. This is an area where upper stages can be placed safely as they usually do not have enough propellant remaining to perform a deorbit burn after a direct GEO insertion mission.
The second is a passivation maneuver on the second stage, opening up its various propellant valves without commanding engine ignition. This prevents any remaining propellant in the stage from creating increased pressure which could lead to the destruction of the stage.
(Lead image: Falcon Heavy in final — horizontal — preparations on launch day for the USSF-67 mission. Credit: Stephen Marr/NSF)
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