Session IX: From Earth to Orbit

Chair: John Garvey – Garvey Spacecraft Corporation

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

1:45 p.m.ASAP: The Access to Space for Small Satellites: Jérôme Thiery – ARIANESPACE; ABSTRACT: For any satellite customer, the key to “mission success” starts with the launch phase, one of the most important and sensitive periods in the whole development chain. This is especially the case for small missions built on small size platforms, for which clear rules and dedicated interface specifications must be established and followed to reach success. Although launch cost is a major driver for such missions, well established standards and corresponding experience must remain a key parameter when selecting the launch service provider. Last year, Arianespace presented its experience in launching small satellites, in particular the ASAP 5 on Ariane 5, as well as the activities that were initiated for the development of new concepts to improve the services for small satellites. Since this conference, major progresses have been made in the development of a new “Arianespace Structure for Auxiliary Payloads” that increases our solutions to launch small satellites with the three launch vehicles of the Arianespace family: Ariane 5, Soyuz and Vega. The first application of this new ASAP concept is foreseen on Soyuz in its configuration ASAP-S end of 2009, beginning of 2010. Arianespace proposes to present this new concept, the ASAP-S User’s Manual (Satellite allowable volume and mass properties, applicable environment, dedicated interface, accommodations), as well as schedule for these new launch opportunities for small satellites.

2:00 p.m.The Interstellar Boundary Explorer Mission Design: A Pegasus Class Mission to a High Energy Orbit: Ryan Tyler, Howard Runge – Orbital Sciences Corporation; D.J. McComas, John Scherrer, Mark Tapley – Southwest Research Institute; ABSTRACT: The Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) is a Small Explorers (SMEX) mission that will provide the first global views of the Suns interstellar boundaries (see McComas et al.1,2,3). For a spacecraft in a low-Earth orbit, attempts to study this region would be drowned out by the Earth’s magnetosphere, so developing these global images requires a high-energy orbit that puts the spacecraft beyond the magnetosphere for the majority of the time. Scheduled to launch in the fall of 2008, IBEX is the first Pegasus-class spacecraft to achieve such a high energy orbit, using an innovative ascent profile that efficiently combines the performance of the Pegasus launch vehicle, an additional solid rocket motor, and the spacecraft’s hydrazine propulsion system. The Pegasus launch vehicle will target a 200 km circular orbit, and 22 seconds after Pegasus separation IBEX will fire its own solid rocket motor to boost apogee. A series of hydrazine burns then finishes the job, raising both apogee and perigee to a 7000 x 319,000 km altitude orbit. This paper begins with the initial daunting problem of finding the performance to reach a high enough orbit and steps through a series of innovations that led to a final design that could reach such an orbit with performance to spare. This ascent approach and mission orbit also present several unique challenges, such as the potential for solar eclipses lasting longer than 10 hours and lunar orbit perturbations that can reduce the orbit perigee to below the surface of the Earth. This paper discusses how those challenges were addressed, and also discusses how the IBEX ascent approach could be applied to future high–apogee — or even Earth escape — missions.

2:15 p.m.A Quick Optimization of a Rocket Trajectory Using MCMC Method: Masashi Miura – The Graduate University for Advanced Studies (Sokendai); Yohsuke Nambu – University of Tokyo; Masaaki Sugimoto, Hajime Yokota, Akane Uemichi – ISAJ; ABSTRACT: In these years, small satellites have grown in performance greatly and it is important to develop the good launcher for small satellites. One of the promising launch systems for small satellites is air launch. In Japan there is no successful small launch vehicle as it is now and some researchers have proposed air launch rockets using existing solid motors. To achieve air launch, some new technologies are necessary. As candidate of the one of such new technologies, the quick optimization of the rocket trajectory with MCMC (Markov chain Monte Carlo) method is introduced in this paper.

2:30 p.m. The Stellar–J: A Partially Reusable Horizonal Take–Off Launch Vehicle for Small Satellite Missions: Wes Kelly, Paul Royall – Triton Systems, LLC; ABSTRACT: For a decade our group has worked to develop a partially reusable launch vehicle based on horizontal take-off and landing of a reusable first stage (RFS) employing both jet and rocket engines. After airfield take-off and ascent to subsonic stratospheric cruise, rocket ignition and pitch pull-up drives the Stellar-J to high altitude and hypersonic engine cutoff similar to conventional booster rockets — or the X-15. Capable of carrying a separable upper stage (or module that can remain attached), the payload mission continues as the Stellar-J climbs to its apogee and then descends to land at a down-range airfield or its launch base. Owing to hardware and operational considerations, the concept scales from 35-350 tons with the largest configurations addressing Progress or Soyuz type missions. We examined a range of target markets for the Stellar-J. At the low end, satellite delivery capabilities are determined by whether a “demonstrator” vehicle is customized from an existing airframe to obtain micro-satellite launch capabilities (<250-lbs) or a dedicated airframe is developed to achieve “full” capabilities (~1000-lbs). With backlogs of several hundred payloads and low initial investment for small configurations, the small satellite market scores well for initial Stellar-J application. Also, with an economical, rapid turn-around system, we see merit in rendezvous and retrieval services, seldom discussed in the small satellite context during the “Shuttle era”. Effects of “nominal” vs. “demonstrator” Stellar-J first stages for small satellites and upper stage selections are discussed in terms of performance, economy and critical paths.

2:45 p.m. Results of QuickReach™ Small Launch Vehicle Propulsion Testing and Next Steps to Demonstration Flights: Debra Facktor Lepore, Ralph Ewig – AirLaunch LLC; ABSTRACT: For the past four years, AirLaunch LLC has been developing the QuickReach Small Launch Vehicle (SLV) under the DARPA/U.S. Air Force Falcon SLV program. The company has successfully completed Phases 1, 2A and 2B of the program. Phase 2C began in June 2007 and continues through fall of 2008. Phase 2C focuses on propulsion characterization of AirLaunchs innovative liquid oxygen (LOX)/propane vapor pressurization (VaPak) propulsion system used on the second stage of its QuickReach SLV. Phase 2C Milestones include upgrades to hardware, instrumentation, and test stands; and a series of test fires on the Horizontal Test Stand (HTS) to gather data on engine performance and on the Vertical Test Stand (VTS) to more comprehensively characterize second stage performance. The QuickReach booster is designed to deliver 1,000 pounds to low earth orbit for $5 million per launch, with less than 24-hour response time. AirLaunch’s approach achieves responsiveness by flying the two-stage, pressurized QuickReach™ system inside an unmodified C-17A or other large cargo aircraft. AirLaunch has also been exploring applications of its second stage propulsion system to other launch vehicles, configurations, and markets. An air-launched rocket enables new concepts of operations (CONOPS) that lead to Operationally Responsive Spacelift (ORS) capability. This paper shares the results of Phase 2C to date and identifies various applications of AirLaunch’s propulsion technology and vehicle configurations to enable the earliest possible flight demonstration.

3:00 p.m. The Falcon 1 Flight–003 Jumpstart Mission Integration Summary: Brian Bjelde, Gwynne Shotwell, Lauren Dreyer, Max Vozoff – Space Exploration Technologies; ABSTRACT: In 2007, following Demonstration Flight 2 - Falcon 1’s second demonstration mission, SpaceX declared Falcon 1 ready to exit the demonstration program and upgraded the vehicle to operational status. The mission was sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the US Air Force (USAF) with objectives centered on testing the vehicle in flight, gathering data and retiring technical risk prior to the first operational flight. This flight resulted in retiring significant risks in both the ground and flight systems. A review of the successes and achievements which led to the decision to go operational is presented along with a description of the interim upgrades made to the vehicle in support of subsequent missions. In 2008, the Jumpstart Mission will be the third flight of the Falcon 1 launch vehicle developed by Space Exploration Technologies in Hawthorne, CA. There are two primary customers for this mission; one is the Department of Defense’s Operationally Responsive Space (ORS) Office and the other is ATSB® of Malaysia. A high–level overview of this mission is discussed along with the future plans for the Falcon 1 launch vehicle, including an additional Falcon 1 mission manifested for 2008 and two others in 2009. Additionally, to better service the needs of the small satellite community, SpaceX plans to upgrade to the Falcon 1 launch vehicle. Beginning in 2010, the enhanced Falcon 1 (Falcon 1e, F1e) will become SpaceX’s standard small launch vehicle. An overview of these changes and how they will positively impact the small satellite community are discussed.

Alternate Micro & Nanosatellite Launch Capabilities from the Star Bus GEO Commercial Communications Platform: Phillip Kalmanson, Michael Do, Quang Lam, Justin Morgan, Srimal Choi, Matthew Seifert – Orbital Sciences Corporation; Bryan Benedict – Intelsat LTD; ABSTRACT: A concept for the deployment of nanosatellites and microsatellites from privately-owned commercial communications satellites will be described in this paper. The Orbital Sciences Corporation Starbus is a platform that is representative of small-sized GEO communications satellites. Modifications to the Starbus can be made to allow a microsatellite to be attached to, and deployed from the nadir deck of host the Star spacecraft. Furthermore other modifications can be made to allow for the mounting and deployment of nanosatellites using the Cubesat form factor. Unique technical and programmatic challenges present themselves in this launch concept of using a GEO spacecraft as the launch platform that are not seen using more traditional rocket launch vehicles. Some of the more unique technical challenges are the impacts to the primary communications payload, effects on primary mission orbit-raising from GTO to GEO, and overall fuel lifetime impacts to the host spacecraft. Some of the programmatic challenges are the integration of schedules from different organizations with different goals and constraints, and the impacts to insurability of the host spacecraft. These Starbus modifications provide for a standardized interface in accommodating micro and nanosatellite launches known as Commercial Rideshare. Commercial Rideshare is a concept for a novel service offered by Orbital and its industry partners in the GEO commercial communications industry to provide a low cost method of space-access that will also provide the high frequency of launch opportunities and the on-time schedule assurance that is typical of commercial communications missions.

Alternate Cubesat Launching Investigation: Elham Shahmari, Sahar Bakhtiari Mojaz – Islamic Azad University; Hooman Jazebizadeh, Karan Molaverdikhani – Sharif University of Technology; Mahsa Taheran – University of Pisa; ABSTRACT: Today different groups started to manufacture cubesats because of the low cost of manufacturing and launching the satellites. With the growth of cubesat manufacturing, the scientist has tried to produce the small launchers to respond the needs of new researchers and young scientists. In 1980 the U.S.A. manufactured the commercial small launcher and starting launch in 1990. Also Russia with improvement of their ballistic missile and performing changes and improvement tried to manufacture small launchers with a minimum cost to launch the cubesat in the planed orbits. The cubesat will be launched into space together with other cubesats inside a so called P-pod it will be placed on top of the launch vehicle as a secondary payload and a principal feature of the cluster launch cubesat is to mitigate the technical and financial risk shared by the orbital deployers who are partners in a particular launch. While maintaining reasonable costs and ensuring time delivery. In accordance with the investigations, more than 10 launchers in the world which has the experience of launching cubesats have been identified. Out of these launched cubesats some of them due to the problems and malfunction of launch vehicles have been failed. Some of the successful and failed launch vehicle has been investigated and mentioned below.


		22nd Annual Conference on Small Satellites Technical Sessions Session IX: From Earth to Orbit Chair: John Garvey – Garvey Spacecraft Corporation Wednesday, August 13, 2008 1:45 p.m.ASAP: The Access to Space for Small Satellites Jérôme Thiery – ARIANESPACE ABSTRACT: For any satellite customer, the key to “mission success” starts with the launch phase, one of the most important and sensitive periods in the whole development chain. This is especially the case for small missions built on small size platforms, for which clear rules and dedicated interface specifications must be established and followed to reach success. Although launch cost is a major driver for such missions, well established standards and corresponding experience must remain a key parameter when selecting the launch service provider. Last year, Arianespace presented its experience in launching small satellites, in particular the ASAP 5 on Ariane 5, as well as the activities that were initiated for the development of new concepts to improve the services for small satellites. Since this conference, major progresses have been made in the development of a new “Arianespace Structure for Auxiliary Payloads” that increases our solutions to launch small satellites with the three launch vehicles of the Arianespace family: Ariane 5, Soyuz and Vega. The first application of this new ASAP concept is foreseen on Soyuz in its configuration ASAP-S end of 2009, beginning of 2010. Arianespace proposes to present this new concept, the ASAP-S User’s Manual (Satellite allowable volume and mass properties, applicable environment, dedicated interface, accommodations), as well as schedule for these new launch opportunities for small satellites. 2:00 p.m.The Interstellar Boundary Explorer Mission Design: A Pegasus Class Mission to a High Energy Orbit Ryan Tyler, Howard Runge – Orbital Sciences Corporation; D.J. McComas, John Scherrer, Mark Tapley – Southwest Research Institute ABSTRACT: The Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) is a Small Explorers (SMEX) mission that will provide the first global views of the Suns interstellar boundaries (see McComas et al.1,2,3). For a spacecraft in a low-Earth orbit, attempts to study this region would be drowned out by the Earth’s magnetosphere, so developing these global images requires a high-energy orbit that puts the spacecraft beyond the magnetosphere for the majority of the time. Scheduled to launch in the fall of 2008, IBEX is the first Pegasus-class spacecraft to achieve such a high energy orbit, using an innovative ascent profile that efficiently combines the performance of the Pegasus launch vehicle, an additional solid rocket motor, and the spacecraft’s hydrazine propulsion system. The Pegasus launch vehicle will target a 200 km circular orbit, and 22 seconds after Pegasus separation IBEX will fire its own solid rocket motor to boost apogee. A series of hydrazine burns then finishes the job, raising both apogee and perigee to a 7000 x 319,000 km altitude orbit. This paper begins with the initial daunting problem of finding the performance to reach a high enough orbit and steps through a series of innovations that led to a final design that could reach such an orbit with performance to spare. This ascent approach and mission orbit also present several unique challenges, such as the potential for solar eclipses lasting longer than 10 hours and lunar orbit perturbations that can reduce the orbit perigee to below the surface of the Earth. This paper discusses how those challenges were addressed, and also discusses how the IBEX ascent approach could be applied to future high–apogee — or even Earth escape — missions. 2:15 p.m.A Quick Optimization of a Rocket Trajectory Using MCMC Method Masashi Miura – The Graduate University for Advanced Studies (Sokendai); Yohsuke Nambu – University of Tokyo; Masaaki Sugimoto, Hajime Yokota, Akane Uemichi – ISAJ ABSTRACT: In these years, small satellites have grown in performance greatly and it is important to develop the good launcher for small satellites. One of the promising launch systems for small satellites is air launch. In Japan there is no successful small launch vehicle as it is now and some researchers have proposed air launch rockets using existing solid motors. To achieve air launch, some new technologies are necessary. As candidate of the one of such new technologies, the quick optimization of the rocket trajectory with MCMC (Markov chain Monte Carlo) method is introduced in this paper. 2:30 p.m. The Stellar–J: A Partially Reusable Horizonal Take–Off Launch Vehicle for Small Satellite Missions Wes Kelly, Paul Royall – Triton Systems, LLC ABSTRACT: For a decade our group has worked to develop a partially reusable launch vehicle based on horizontal take-off and landing of a reusable first stage (RFS) employing both jet and rocket engines. After airfield take-off and ascent to subsonic stratospheric cruise, rocket ignition and pitch pull-up drives the Stellar-J to high altitude and hypersonic engine cutoff similar to conventional booster rockets — or the X-15. Capable of carrying a separable upper stage (or module that can remain attached), the payload mission continues as the Stellar-J climbs to its apogee and then descends to land at a down-range airfield or its launch base. Owing to hardware and operational considerations, the concept scales from 35-350 tons with the largest configurations addressing Progress or Soyuz type missions. We examined a range of target markets for the Stellar-J. At the low end, satellite delivery capabilities are determined by whether a “demonstrator” vehicle is customized from an existing airframe to obtain micro-satellite launch capabilities (<250-lbs) or a dedicated airframe is developed to achieve “full” capabilities (~1000-lbs). With backlogs of several hundred payloads and low initial investment for small configurations, the small satellite market scores well for initial Stellar-J application. Also, with an economical, rapid turn-around system, we see merit in rendezvous and retrieval services, seldom discussed in the small satellite context during the “Shuttle era”. Effects of “nominal” vs. “demonstrator” Stellar-J first stages for small satellites and upper stage selections are discussed in terms of performance, economy and critical paths. 2:45 p.m. Results of QuickReach™ Small Launch Vehicle Propulsion Testing and Next Steps to Demonstration Flights Debra Facktor Lepore, Ralph Ewig – AirLaunch LLC ABSTRACT: For the past four years, AirLaunch LLC has been developing the QuickReach Small Launch Vehicle (SLV) under the DARPA/U.S. Air Force Falcon SLV program. The company has successfully completed Phases 1, 2A and 2B of the program. Phase 2C began in June 2007 and continues through fall of 2008. Phase 2C focuses on propulsion characterization of AirLaunchs innovative liquid oxygen (LOX)/propane vapor pressurization (VaPak) propulsion system used on the second stage of its QuickReach SLV. Phase 2C Milestones include upgrades to hardware, instrumentation, and test stands; and a series of test fires on the Horizontal Test Stand (HTS) to gather data on engine performance and on the Vertical Test Stand (VTS) to more comprehensively characterize second stage performance. The QuickReach booster is designed to deliver 1,000 pounds to low earth orbit for $5 million per launch, with less than 24-hour response time. AirLaunch’s approach achieves responsiveness by flying the two-stage, pressurized QuickReach™ system inside an unmodified C-17A or other large cargo aircraft. AirLaunch has also been exploring applications of its second stage propulsion system to other launch vehicles, configurations, and markets. An air-launched rocket enables new concepts of operations (CONOPS) that lead to Operationally Responsive Spacelift (ORS) capability. This paper shares the results of Phase 2C to date and identifies various applications of AirLaunch’s propulsion technology and vehicle configurations to enable the earliest possible flight demonstration. 3:00 p.m. The Falcon 1 Flight–003 Jumpstart Mission Integration Summary Brian Bjelde, Gwynne Shotwell, Lauren Dreyer, Max Vozoff – Space Exploration Technologies ABSTRACT: In 2007, following Demonstration Flight 2 - Falcon 1’s second demonstration mission, SpaceX declared Falcon 1 ready to exit the demonstration program and upgraded the vehicle to operational status. The mission was sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the US Air Force (USAF) with objectives centered on testing the vehicle in flight, gathering data and retiring technical risk prior to the first operational flight. This flight resulted in retiring significant risks in both the ground and flight systems. A review of the successes and achievements which led to the decision to go operational is presented along with a description of the interim upgrades made to the vehicle in support of subsequent missions. In 2008, the Jumpstart Mission will be the third flight of the Falcon 1 launch vehicle developed by Space Exploration Technologies in Hawthorne, CA. There are two primary customers for this mission; one is the Department of Defense’s Operationally Responsive Space (ORS) Office and the other is ATSB® of Malaysia. A high–level overview of this mission is discussed along with the future plans for the Falcon 1 launch vehicle, including an additional Falcon 1 mission manifested for 2008 and two others in 2009. Additionally, to better service the needs of the small satellite community, SpaceX plans to upgrade to the Falcon 1 launch vehicle. Beginning in 2010, the enhanced Falcon 1 (Falcon 1e, F1e) will become SpaceX’s standard small launch vehicle. An overview of these changes and how they will positively impact the small satellite community are discussed. Alternate Micro & Nanosatellite Launch Capabilities from the Star Bus GEO Commercial Communications Platform Phillip Kalmanson, Michael Do, Quang Lam, Justin Morgan, Srimal Choi, Matthew Seifert – Orbital Sciences Corporation; Bryan Benedict – Intelsat LTD ABSTRACT: A concept for the deployment of nanosatellites and microsatellites from privately-owned commercial communications satellites will be described in this paper. The Orbital Sciences Corporation Starbus is a platform that is representative of small-sized GEO communications satellites. Modifications to the Starbus can be made to allow a microsatellite to be attached to, and deployed from the nadir deck of host the Star spacecraft. Furthermore other modifications can be made to allow for the mounting and deployment of nanosatellites using the Cubesat form factor. Unique technical and programmatic challenges present themselves in this launch concept of using a GEO spacecraft as the launch platform that are not seen using more traditional rocket launch vehicles. Some of the more unique technical challenges are the impacts to the primary communications payload, effects on primary mission orbit-raising from GTO to GEO, and overall fuel lifetime impacts to the host spacecraft. Some of the programmatic challenges are the integration of schedules from different organizations with different goals and constraints, and the impacts to insurability of the host spacecraft. These Starbus modifications provide for a standardized interface in accommodating micro and nanosatellite launches known as Commercial Rideshare. Commercial Rideshare is a concept for a novel service offered by Orbital and its industry partners in the GEO commercial communications industry to provide a low cost method of space-access that will also provide the high frequency of launch opportunities and the on-time schedule assurance that is typical of commercial communications missions. Alternate Cubesat Launching Investigation Elham Shahmari, Sahar Bakhtiari Mojaz – Islamic Azad University; Hooman Jazebizadeh, Karan Molaverdikhani – Sharif University of Technology; Mahsa Taheran – University of Pisa ABSTRACT: Today different groups started to manufacture cubesats because of the low cost of manufacturing and launching the satellites. With the growth of cubesat manufacturing, the scientist has tried to produce the small launchers to respond the needs of new researchers and young scientists. In 1980 the U.S.A. manufactured the commercial small launcher and starting launch in 1990. Also Russia with improvement of their ballistic missile and performing changes and improvement tried to manufacture small launchers with a minimum cost to launch the cubesat in the planed orbits. The cubesat will be launched into space together with other cubesats inside a so called P-pod it will be placed on top of the launch vehicle as a secondary payload and a principal feature of the cluster launch cubesat is to mitigate the technical and financial risk shared by the orbital deployers who are partners in a particular launch. While maintaining reasonable costs and ensuring time delivery. In accordance with the investigations, more than 10 launchers in the world which has the experience of launching cubesats have been identified. Out of these launched cubesats some of them due to the problems and malfunction of launch vehicles have been failed. Some of the successful and failed launch vehicle has been investigated and mentioned below.