Firefly lunar lander touches down on the moon
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Firefly emphasizes first Alpha launch a test flight
by Jeff Foust — September 2, 2021
VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, Calif. — Firefly Aerospace is ready for the first orbital launch attempt of its Alpha rocket on a flight that is as much about collecting vehicle data as it is about reaching orbit.
The Alpha rocket is scheduled to lift off during a four-hour window that opens at 9 p.m. Eastern Sept. 2 from Space Launch Complex 2 here. The company has a two-hour backup window Sept. 3. Weather is favorable for the launch.
The inaugural Alpha launch is primarily a demonstration mission for the new small launch vehicle. “It’s a test flight,” Lauren Lyons, chief operating officer of Firefly, said during a tour of the company’s launch control center Sept. 1. “Our really big goal is to get Alpha to space. If we can get to orbit, even better. If we can open up that fairing and deploy those satellites, even better. Our goals are to collect as much data as we possibly can and take Alpha as far as it can go.”
While Alpha is designed to carry up to one metric ton of payload to orbit, this inaugural flight is carrying less than 100 kilograms. The Dedicated Research and Educational Accelerator Mission (DREAM) includes several cubesats as well as “non-technical” payloads, such as memorabilia and photos. The mission will also test a plasma thruster Firefly intends for use on its Space Utility Vehicle tug and an 18-square-meter drag sail contributed by Purdue University to help deorbit the upper stage.
Rather than launch to the south into a polar orbit, as typically used for missions from Vandenberg, Alpha will launch to the west, placing the payloads into a retrograde orbit 300 kilometers high at an inclination of 137 degrees. That also reduces the payload capacity of the vehicle.
Firefly took that approach for range safety on its first launch. “We’re taking a really safe trajectory,” said Tom Markusic, chief executive of Firefly. “If we were flying due south, we’d have a very tight corridor we’d have to go down though. Here, we have a very wide corridor so that, if the vehicle’s not tracking quite right, it gives us an opportunity to get back on track without having to terminate the mission.”
If this launch is successful, Firefly could be ready to perform its second Alpha launch, and first with a commercial customer, as soon as December. Markusic said the company has a couple prospective payloads lined up for the launch. “A lot of it depends on the relative success of this launch and the amount of risk customers are willing to take,” he said. “That will determine which customers would be on that second flight.”
Markusic, like Lyons, emphasized that the primary purpose of the launch is to collect data about how Alpha performs in flight. “It’s a flight test, so getting data is success,” he said. “The more data we get, the better.”
The only thing he is worried about is not the rocket itself but holddown clamps at the base of the vehicle that must release with precise timing to allow the vehicle to lift off. “I worry about one of them hanging up and causing us to lose the rocket before it’s had a chance to give us some flight data,” he said, adding those clamps have been extensively tested. “I can accept if we ultimately find another problem that we could have only found in flight, but I just can’t accept a ground system causing us to lose a mission.”
https://spacenews.com/firefly-emphasizes-first-alpha-launch-a-test-fli
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The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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One of Jeff Belzos engineiers left and went to Firefly. It feels wierd posting that.
T
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Quote:Bezos lost a contract so his highest paid, most ambitious engineers quit to go work where there is long-term work at a larger salary. Engineers know their fast-moving careers can't wait for a very slow-moving court to decide:
Originally posted by THG:
One of Jeff Belzos engineers left and went to Firefly. It feels wierd posting that.
T
"Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin sues NASA over denied moon lander contract"
https://www.space.com/blue-origin-sues-nasa-over-moon-lander-contract
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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Watch Firefly launch their FIRST EVER orbital rocket, Alpha!
894 waiting Scheduled for Sep 2, 2021
We will go live at T-60 minutes, so you can use the YouTube notification to know they are 60 minutes from launch] Also stay tuned to our twitter feeds for additional updates - http://twitter.com/erdayastronaut
Firefly Aerospace is the next private rocket company that aims to achieve orbit with its brand new Alpha launch vehicle. Alpha will lift off from Vandenberg Space Force Base, USA, and targets a 300 km low Earth orbit (LEO) in which it will deploy multiple payloads. On board of the FLTA001 DREAM mission will be Firefly’s DREAM payloads, which consist of technical and non-technical payloads, ranging from CubeSats and DNA samples, to pictures of loved ones.
Read more about this mission here by checking out our Prelaunch Preview!! - https://everydayastronaut.com/flta001-dream-alpha/
And see how Alpha compares to some other small sat launchers by watching our video about some of these new and upcoming rockets! -
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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Quote:Bezos lost a contract so his highest paid, most ambitious engineers quit to go work where there is long-term work at a larger salary. Engineers know their fast-moving careers can't wait for a very slow-moving court to decide:
Originally posted by second:Quote:
Originally posted by THG:
One of Jeff Belzos engineers left and went to Firefly. It feels wierd posting that.
T
"Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin sues NASA over denied moon lander contract"
https://www.space.com/blue-origin-sues-nasa-over-moon-lander-contract
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
Agreed
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Watch Firefly launch their FIRST EVER orbital rocket, Alpha!
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I just saw you posted the live launch video two. Nicely done I'm currently watching it.
T
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He called the engines reaver engines.
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Firefly Alpha rocket explodes during first orbital flight attempt
Everything looked good for the first 2.5 minutes of the flight. But the two-stage, 95-foot-tall (29 meters) Alpha then suffered a fatal problem, exploding in a dramatic fireball high in the California sky.
https://www.space.com/firefly-aerospace-first-alpha-rocket-launch-fail
ure
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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