SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 - NROL-108 - Launching December 19, 2020
Screenshot from SpaceX Webcast of the launch attempt of NROL-108 in the fog two days before
Mission Rundown: SpaceX Falcon 9 B5 - NROL-108
Written: August 4, 2021
If what goes up, does it come down?
SpaceX will launch a Falcon 9 with NROL-108. This is a classified payload for the National Reconnaissance Office. The Falcon 9 will lift off from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A), from Kennedy Space Center, in Florida. Due to the classified nature of the payload, very little is known. However, the payload must have a mass of under 7,000 kg as it is a return to launch site (RTLS) mission.
B1059 first flew on the CRS-19 mission, which launched on December 5, 2019. NROL-108 is the booster’s fifth flight; its designation will change to B1059-5.
Following stage separation, the Falcon 9 will conduct 3 burns, a boost back burn to change flight direction back to the launch site, a reentry burn to break the descending boosters speed just before hitting the denser parts of the atmosphere and a landing burn to shave of the last 900 km/h or so speed to zero at touchdown. These three burns will make the booster softly touch down at LZ-1.
The Payload
NROL-108, shortened from NRO Launch 108, is part of an arbitrary numbering system used to identify the NRO’s satellites – without disclosing their identities – before launch.
Once in orbit, payloads are usually assigned another numerical designation, prefixed by the letters USA. In recent years, these USA designations have been assigned sequentially, with USA-312 the next available designation in the sequence.
However Wikipedia’s list over NRO launches tell us that two satellites were deployed, USA-312 and USA-313, its orbit altitude and inclination, but nothing else. Two equal sized satellites? One big satellite deploying one small CubeSat on its own? Or something unseen never to be imagined by civilians.
NROL-108’s existence was kept in shadow until late September when it was revealed in a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) filing – a document that launch providers submit in order to gain approval to carry out necessary communications between launch vehicle and ground stations – and confirmed to be launched under NRO jurisdiction.
However, ground observers will be able to find the satellite after launch and calculate its orbit. Nevertheless, certain things are known.
SpaceX and the NRO have confirmed that Falcon 9’s first stage was to fly back towards Cape Canaveral Space Force Station to land at SpaceX’s Landing Zone 1. Ahead of the launch, notices to airmen (NOTAMs) and mariners were released, establishing hazard areas that show the course NROL-108 will take after leaving the Kennedy Space Center.
The NRO’s mission patch and fairing art for NROL-108 displays a gorilla, with the motto “Peace Through Strength” printed on the outer circle. According to the agency, this mission represents a gorilla in the sense that “it is constantly vigilant and ready to defend its own, demonstrating NRO’s commitment to protecting U.S. warfighters, interests, and allies.”
The Falcon 9 launch vehicle and payload were rolled out to the pad and raised to vertical on Wednesday. Typically, SpaceX prefers to conduct a static fire test of the Falcon 9’s Merlin-1D first stage engines a handful of days before the launch; however, the company elected to forgo such a test before this mission for the fifth time.
Up there and back down again
Falcon 9 with NROL-108 on booster B1059-5 didn’t show us more than a launch and the return flight of the booster with a picture perfect landing. It was acting just like a Hobbit going there and back again. B1059-5 is a “Baggins”.
Somebody in the 45th Space Force made an alternative mission patch based on Tolkien’s “The Ring” trilogy. By the way “The flaming eye” has a man standing in the middle of it, it’s not a catlike monster eye.
The black speech on the ring says following:
One satellite to rule them all
One satellite to find them all
One satellite to blind them all
And in space bind them
The word “blind” in the third line is my interpretation of the spelling, what is realy written I don’t know. It looks like “Brint”, but that doesn’t make sense to me.
If assumed that “blind them” means that NROL-108 is built to cause enemy satellites to lose their “senses” cameras, antenna arrays, receivers and transmitters inoperational aka. “blind them”, well a high power laser can burn a hole in just about anything vital except the fuel tanks. No need to explode it all over the orbit.
Solar array power cables, ion battery banks, star cameras, attitude thrusters, exposed fuel or pressurized gas lines or control cables to any of the mentioned “senses” can cripple a satellite without blowing it up.
Anyway a lot goes bump in the darkness of space without anyone the wiser. Don’t sweat it. You can’t do anything about it. So carry on with whatever floats your boat.
Here’s my two cents worth on the NROL-108 mission and perhaps purpose.
It sure looks like somebody is a Tolkien fan - Who can blame him - My precious...
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