SpaceX Falcon 9 - CRS-8

  SpaceX Falcon 9 Full Thrust - CRS-8 - Launching April 8, 2016

Screenshot from SpaceX Webcast of CRS-8

Mission Rundown: SpaceX Falcon 9 FT - CRS-8

Written: January 31, 2021

Lift Off Time	April 8, 2016 - 20:34:32 UTC - 16:34:32 EST
Mission Name	CRS-8
Launch Provider	SpaceX
Customer	NASA
Rocket	Falcon 9 Full Thrust serial number B1021-1
Launch Location	Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida
Payload	Cargo Dragon serial number C110-1
Payload mass	3 136 kg ~ 6 914 pounds
Where are the Dragon going?	Low Earth Orbit to the International Space Station
Will they be attempting to recover the first stage?	Yes - A drone ship is waiting downrange
Where will the first stage land?	OCISLY has been towed 295 km downrange
Will they be attempting to recover the fairings?	No. The Dragon capsule have a jettisonable nose cone and solar panel covers on the Trunk
This will be the:	– 23th flight of all Falcon 9 rockets – 3rd flight of Falcon 9 Full Trust “V1.2” booster  – 21st SpaceX launch from SLC-40 – 2nd booster landing overall – 1st booster landing on Marmac 304 - OCISLY – 3rd mission for SpaceX in 2016
Where to watch Where to read more	SpaceX link Want to know or learn more link visit Tim Dodd

Launch debriefing (This is what happend)

T-00:18:26 Hosts: - T-00:00:02 T 00:00:00 T+00:01:14 T+00:02:37 T+00:02:46 T+00:03:18 T+00:04:22 T+00:06:41 T+00:08:01 T+00:08:36 T+00:09:55 T+00:10:43 T+00:13:01 - - T+00:14:10 - T+41:13:28 784:35:28 790:07:28

SpaceX live feed at 00:33 Kate Tice, Brian Mahlstedt in Florida, John Federspiel and Tom Praderio are all having a late afternoon cup of tea TEA-TEB Ignition - Full Thrust check Liftoff at 19:01 - 20:43:32 UTC on April 8, 2016 MaxQ at 20:15 MECO 21:37, stage separation 21:40 SES-1 at 21:47 - Velocity 6 480 km/h Nose cone in view at 22:27 Boost break burn 23:22 - 3 Merlin 1D+ 40 seconds Entry burn 25:42 by 3 Merlin 1D+ for 10 seconds Landing burn 27:07 by 1 Merlin 1D+ for 35 seconds First Stage landing on OCISLY - Cherings galore SECO at 28:56 and coasting - Not shown Cargo Dragon C110-1 separation at 29:44 - Not shown Deployment of solar array at 32:02 SES - SECO duration of 430 seconds gave a velocity boost from 6 480 km/h to 27 108 km/h Rap up from SpaceX at 33:10 Other events during this CRS-8 mission was: Berthing with ISS Harmony Nadir airlock at 13:57 UTC Released from ISS after 30 days at 13:19 UTC Landed in Pacific Ocean near NRC Quest at 18:51 UTC

Jason-3	SES-9	CRS-8	JCSAT-14	Thaicom-8
Eutelsat 117  B  ABS-2A	CRS-9	JCSAT-16	AMOS-6	Iridium-1 Next

The Falcon has landed. Again

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket will launch the Dragon C110-1 spacecraft to low Earth orbit to deliver supplies and critical cargo to the International Space Station (ISS) for NASA. SpaceX is targeting an afternoon launch of its eighth Commercial Resupply Services mission (CRS-8) from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

The instantaneous launch window opens on April 8th at 8:43:32pm UTC. The Dragon will be deployed about 10 minutes after liftoff and attached to the ISS about two days later.

Following stage separation, the first stage of the Falcon 9 will attempt an experimental landing on the “Of Course I Still Love You” drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. Great helicopter footage of the landing at T+08:25.

The Mission step by step

CRS-8 is part of the original order of twelve missions awarded to SpaceX under the Commercial Resupply Services contract.

SpaceX CRS-8, also known as SpX-8, was a Commercial Resupply Service mission to the International Space Station (ISS) which was launched on April 8, 2016, at 20:43 UTC. It was the 23rd flight of a Falcon 9 rocket, the tenth flight of a Dragon cargo spacecraft and the eighth operational mission contracted to SpaceX by NASA under the Commercial Resupply Services program.

The launch was initially scheduled by NASA to occur no earlier than September 2, 2015. The launch date went under review pending the outcome of the analysis of the failure of the Falcon 9 launch vehicle in SpaceX CRS-7, a June 2015 flight. The return-to-flight (RTF) project included additional improvements.

With additional manifest changes announced by SpaceX in mid-October, CRS-8 was scheduled to be the third launch of the upgraded Falcon 9 Full Thrust rocket. By March 2016, the launch date was set to April 8, 2016, with a backup launch window the next day.

The spacecraft was finally launched on schedule, at 20:43:32 UTC on April 8, 2016. The rocket first stage separated around 2 minutes 40 seconds after liftoff, and the second stage separated around ten minutes 30 seconds after liftoff.

The Payload

NASA has contracted for the CRS-8 mission from SpaceX and therefore determines the orbital parameters for the primary payload – the Dragon space capsule.

The mission delivered 3,136 kilograms (6,914 lb) of supplies, experiments, and hardware to the ISS. These include the station's first expandable 1 412 kg module, called the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM), which is expected to remain on the station for at least two years of observation and testing.

It's a giant space suit-like fabric bag that's being tested as an inflatable International Space Station module, and future modules should at least be used as storage rooms for garbage, unused science equipment and bulky supplies from Earth that don't need constant airflow.

The Dragon capsule and The Bigelow module getting ready for launch

The pressurized cargo being delivered to the space station by CRS-8 comes to a total mass of 1,723 kilograms (3,799 lb).

This includes 640 kg (1411 lb) of scientific equipment, 547 kg (1,206 lb) of supplies and provisions for the crew, 108 kg (238 lb) of computer equipment, 12 kg (26 lb) of hardware to support EVAs using the US Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) spacesuits, 306 kg (675 lb) of hardware for the US segment of the outpost and 33 kg (73 lb) to the Russians.

Also delivered in the Dragon were sixteen Flock 2d 3U CubeSats for the Earth-observing Flock constellation, built and operated by Planet Labs, which will be deployed by the NanoRacks CubeSat Deployer

After splashdown, the mission returned more than 3,700 lb (1,700 kg) of cargo from the station back to Earth.

Author William Graham link link

Coauthor/Text Retriever Johnny Nielsen link to launch list

SpaceX Falcon 9 - SES-9

  SpaceX Falcon 9 Full Thrust - SES-9 - Launching March 4, 2016

Screenshot from SpaceX Webcast of the launch of SES-9

Mission Rundown: SpaceX Falcon 9 FT - SES-9

Written: January 31, 2021

Lift Off Time	March 4, 2016 - 23:35 UTC - 18:35 EST
Mission Name	SES-9
Launch Provider	SpaceX
Customer	SES S. A.
Rocket	Falcon 9 Full Thrust serial number B1020
Launch Location	Space Launch Complex 40 - SLC-40 Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida
Payload	BSS-702HP Communication Satellite
Payload mass	5 271 kg ~ 11 620 pounds
Where did the satellite go?	Geostationary Transfer Orbit - 323 km x 40 654  km
Will they be attempting to recover the first stage?	Yes - A drone ship are stationed east of SLC-40
Where will the first stage land?	OCISLY are waiting about 662 km downrange
Will they be attempting to recover the fairings?	No - Not expected to survive reentry or water impact
Are these fairings new?	Yes - Two Type 1 boat hull sized fairings - 34 x 17 feet with 10 evenly spaced ventilation ports in a circle
This will be the:	– 22nd flight of all Falcon 9 rockets – 2nd flight of Falcon 9 Full Trust “V1.2” rocket – 20th SpaceX launch from SLC-40 – 21st crash landing. Soft, hard, deliberate, Ups... – 2nd mission for SpaceX in 2016
Where to watch Where to read more	SpaceX link Want to learn more link visit Tim Dodd

 

Launch debriefing (This is what happend)

T-00:09:26 Hosts: - T-00:00:02 T 00:00:00 T+00:01:23 T+00:02:39 - T+00:02:49 T+00:03:41 T+00:06:37 T+00:08:16 T+00:08:56 T+00:26:32 - T+00:27:03 - T+00:27:14 T+00:32:07 -

SpaceX live feed at 00:33 Lauren Lyons, Michael Hammersley, Tom Praderio and John Insprucker are putting on a show this evening TEA-TEB Ignition - Full Thrust check Liftoff at 10:00 MaxQ at 11:23 MECO 12:39, stage separation 12:41 1st stage 0 - 8 325 km/h, 0 - 64,6 km, in 161 seconds SES-1 at 12:49 - Velocity 8 209 km/h - 73,4 km Faring separation at 13:41 Entry burn 16:37 by 3 Merlin 1D+ for 18 seconds Landing burn 18:20 by 1 Merlin 1D+ for 21 seconds? SECO at 18:56 - Velocity 26 981 km/h, 165 km SpaceX resumes live feed at 36:32 Velocity drop by 549 km/h - Altitude increase 126 km SES-2 - SECO-2 in 58 seconds gave a velocity boost from 26 432 km/h to 35 254 km/h at 37:03 Liquid oxygen sloshing about in LOX tank at 37:14 SpaceX show deployment at 42:07 Rap up from SpaceX at 42:52

Jason-3	SES-9	CRS-8	JCSAT-14	Thaicom-8
Eutelsat 117  B  ABS-2A	CRS-9	JCSAT-16	AMOS-6	Iridium-1 Next

How hard can water be?

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket will deliver SES-9, a commercial communications satellite for SES, to a Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO).

SES S. A. is a world-leading satellite operator providing satellite-enabled communications services to broadcasters, Internet service providers, mobile and fixed network operators, and business and governmental organizations worldwide using its fleet of more than 50 geostationary satellites.

SpaceX is targeting an evening launch of SES-9 from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. The approximately 90-minute launch window opens on March 4 at 11:35 pm UTC. The satellite will be deployed approximately 31 minutes after liftoff. If you want to know more, here’s another news source.

The Payload

SES-9 is a large communications satellite operating in geostationary orbit at 108.2° East, providing communications services to Northeast Asia, South Asia and Indonesia, maritime communications for vessels in the Indian Ocean and mobility beams for "seamless in-flight connectivity" for domestic Asian airlines of Indonesia and the Philippines.

The satellite was built by Boeing, using a model BSS-702HP satellite bus. SES-9 has 57 high-power Ku-band transponders, equivalent to 81 transponders of 36 MHz bandwidth and, co-located at 108.2°E alongside SES-7, it provides additional and replacement capacity for DTH broadcasting and data in Northeast Asia, South Asia and Indonesia, and maritime communications for the Indian Ocean. Broadcasts on six Ku-band coverage beams go to six different geographical areas in Asia.

SES-9 had a mass of approximately 5,271 kilograms (11,621 lb) at launch, the largest Falcon 9 payload yet to a highly-energetic geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO). SES S.A. used the spacecraft's own propulsion capabilities to circularize the trajectory to a geostationary orbit.

SES-9 is a replacement for the NSS-11 satellite which was acquired by SES when it purchased GE Americom in 2001. Launched by a Proton-K/DM3 rocket in October 2000 with a design life of fifteen years, the satellite was initially named GE-1A, but following its acquisition by SES and the rebranding of GE Americom to SES Americom, it became Americom Asia-Pacific 1, or AAP-1.

The satellite was transferred to a new subsidiary, WorldSat, in January 2004 as WorldSat-1 and returned to SES Americom about a year later. In 2007, the satellite was transferred to another division, SES New Skies, as NSS-11. Following replacement by SES-9, NSS-11 will be relocated to a different orbital slot for further operation.

Risk Taking with Falcon 9

The original apogee for the transfer orbit contracted by SpaceX was 26,000 kilometers (16,000 mi), a subsynchronous highly-elliptical orbit that SES would then circularize and raise over several months before the satellite would be ready for operational service at 36,000 kilometers (22,000 mi). SES CTO Martin Halliwell indicated in February 2016 that SpaceX had agreed to add additional energy to the spacecraft with the launch vehicle and that a new apogee of approximately 39,000 km (24,000 mi) was the objective, in order to assist SES in the satellite becoming operational many weeks earlier than otherwise possible.

Following word from SES that SpaceX had allocated some of the normal propellant reserve margins for landing to placing the SES-9 satellite in a higher (and more energetic) orbit than originally planned, SpaceX confirmed in February that they would still attempt a secondary goal of executing a controlled-descent and vertical landing flight test of the first stage on the SpaceX east-coast Autonomous spaceport drone ship (a barge rebuilt as a floating landing platform) named Of Course I Still Love You.

Although SpaceX successfully recovered a first booster on land following the December launch to a less-energetic orbital trajectory, they had not yet succeeded in booster recovery from any of the previous attempts to land on a floating platform. Because the SES-9 satellite was very heavy and was going to such a high orbit, SpaceX indicated prior to launch that they did not expect this landing to succeed.

As expected, booster recovery failed: the spent first stage "landed hard", damaging the drone ship, but the controlled-descent and atmospheric re-entry, as well as navigation to a point in the Atlantic ocean over 600 kilometers (370 mi) away from the launch site, were successful and returned significant test data on bringing back a high-energy and fast flying Falcon 9 from a launch on SLC-40 in Florida.

The word “high-energy” means that the kinetic energy stored in Falcon 9’s velocity squared and multiplied by the first stage mass, and that is reduced by the air’s friction cubed, which makes a Falcon 9 first stage return look like a burning freight train coming down.

Hot, heavy and fast.

Author William Graham link link

Coauthor/Text Retriever Johnny Nielsen link to launch list