Launch Date and a Blog

[Derek C Breit]

-- Launch Date Now Set for LRO and LCROSS Moon Missions

http://www.nasawatch.com/archives/2009/05/launch_date_now.html

"Mark June 17th on you calendar as that's when NASA's Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) and Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

(LRO) will launch on an Atlas V from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. As part of the lead up and during the mission Paul. D Tompkins, Flight Team Leader of LCROSS has started blogging. Here is a snippet of his latest entry."

 

Derek

http://www.poyntsource.com/New/index.htm

 

 

[Jim Mosher]

Thanks, Derek!

The actual blog seems to be at:

http://blogs.nasa.gov/cm/blog/lcrossfdblog

I notice the Flight Director's May 15th entry says: "big news today –
our launch date has officially slipped from June 2 to June 17. This
won’t affect our impact date significantly – we’ll be hitting the
lunar south pole in early October 2009."

I'm not sure that means a June 17th launch date is quite as set in
stone as the NASA_watch commentator implies, but the new(?) news about
the expected impact date and site is certainly interesting.

-- Jim

On May 18, 7:16 pm, "Derek C Breit" <breit_id...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> -- Launch Date Now Set for LRO and LCROSS Moon Missions

> <http://www.nasawatch.com/archives/2009/05/launch_date_now.html>http://www.nasawatch.com/archives/2009/05/launch_date_now.html

[VAXHeadroom (LCROSS FSW Lead)]

The entire flight team is working to a June 17 launch date. This is
the "No Earlier Than" NET date as are all launches. There is nothing
in any plans at this point which leads me to believe otherwise.

Emory Stagmer
Northrop Grumman TS
LCROSS C&DH Flight Software Lead

> > Derekhttp://www.poyntsource.com/New/index.htm- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

[Jim Mosher]

Thanks for the clarification, Emory! I apologize for any confusion my
posting may have caused.

The LCROSS website mentioned "a June 17 window":

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/LCROSS/launch/index.html

and without your clarification I would have thought the "planning
chart" informally distributed in February:

http://groups.google.com/group/lcross_observation/web/questions-answered-by-lcross-scientists#16

meant that "window" might consist of an LRO launch on June 18, 19 or
21.

But if I had checked the LCROSS "Twitter" site:

http://twitter.com/LCROSS_NASA

I would have seen (May 16th entry): "We finally have a real launch
date. June 17th".

Like me, most group members have no affiliation with the mission. As a
result, we occasionally miss key postings or misinterpret the
information that is released (or at least, I do). As the launch
approaches I hope we will receive more input like yours, correcting
the many errors in our messages.

-- Jim


On May 19, 8:57 am, "VAXHeadroom (LCROSS FSW Lead)"

> > > Derekhttp://www.poyntsource.com/New/index.htm-Hide quoted text -

[VAXHeadroom (LCROSS FSW Lead)]

The windows refer to the times we can launch and actually reach the
moon. It's a few days running then a few days when it won't work and
we'd have to wait until the next window.
The earth rotates about 1,000mph at the equator (rotational velocity
at KSC is left as an exercise for the reader), the moon's orbital
velocity around the earth is about 1.022 km/s, (per wikipedia) and
then you have rocket fueling considerations and...so anyway you have
narrow launch slots within the windows and they vary according to
things we software guys don't usually think about :D
But the first window we working towards being ready for is 17-Jun and
I think runs until the 19th, and then it's a few days until the next
window. And since the Centaur (Atlas V upper stage) is hydrogen/
oxygen then can only keep it fueled a few days at a time and then they
have to cycle the
propellent and that takes a few days...

Emory

On May 20, 11:26 am, Jim Mosher <jimmos...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Thanks for the clarification, Emory!  I apologize for any confusion my
> posting may have caused.
>
> The LCROSS website mentioned "a June 17 window":
>
>  http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/LCROSS/launch/index.html
>
> and without your clarification I would have thought the "planning
> chart" informally distributed in February:
>

>  http://groups.google.com/group/lcross_observation/web/questions-answe...

> > > > Derekhttp://www.poyntsource.com/New/index.htm-Hidequoted text -
>
> > > - Show quoted text -- Hide quoted text -