United Launch Alliance (ULA) Vulcan Next Generation Launch System (NGLS)

publiusr said:
Energiya got slimed by Polyus' failure...I hope that isn't the case here.

True, I have read where nearly empty rockets might impart damage to smaller payloads...yet didn't Atlas have thrust limiters? Wouldn't Vulcan as a matter of course?
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We don't know whether it was the launcher or the payload, or space debris.
 
I've just caught up with the news. So Vulcan worked like a charm for their first flight - kudos to ULA. They know their rocketry, which is hardly surprising considering their colossal legacy - Thor, Atlas, Delta, and EELV.

As for the lunar lander - "the Moon is a harsh mistress" as he said.
 
All Astrobotic can do now is to build a successor to the lander and try again, with the leasons learned from the first lander.
 
FighterJock said:
All Astrobotic can do now is to build a successor to the lander and try again, with the leasons learned from the first lander.
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Actual they building a second lander Griffin, but this one has to bring very expensive NASA rover VIPER to the Moon...
 
Good to see that they are building a second lander, it is amazing to see that it is to carry a NASA rover called Viper to the Moon. But will Griffin be capable of being launched by the Vulcan or will it have to be a much larger rocket?
 
https://twitter.com/x/status/1744770456626893215
View: https://twitter.com/astrobotic/status/1744770456626893215


Update #7 for Peregrine Mission One:
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The Peregrine spacecraft has now been operational for about 32 hours.
Overnight, the team faced another spacecraft pointing issue, but continues to persevere. The spacecraft started to tilt away from the Sun and reduced its solar power generation. The team was able to update the control algorithm and fix this issue. The batteries are at full charge.
Given the propellant leak, there is, unfortunately, no chance of a soft landing on the Moon. However, we do still have enough propellant to continue to operate the vehicle as a spacecraft. The team has updated its estimates, and we currently expect to run out of propellant in about 40 hours from now — an improvement from last night's estimate. The team continues to work to find ways to extend Peregrine's operational life. We are in a stable operating mode and are working payload and spacecraft tests and checkouts. We continue receiving valuable data and proving spaceflight operations for components and software relating to our next lunar lander mission, Griffin.
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publiusr said:
Energiya got slimed by Polyus' failure...I hope that isn't the case here.

True, I have read where nearly empty rockets might impart damage to smaller payloads...yet didn't Atlas have thrust limiters? Wouldn't Vulcan as a matter of course?
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not the Centaur, But this had nothing to do with Vulcan.

publiusr said:
Energiya got slimed by Polyus' failure...I hope that isn't the case here.
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Energiya couldn't put a payload into orbit by itself. It would always be dependent on an upperstage. Much like SLS.
 
With the problems the Peregrine lander is suffering from TheSpaceBucket has put out a video about the situation:


Yesterday at 2:18 am EST, for the first time ever ULA’s new rocket Vulcan lifted off. Here we saw some brand new components including two Blue Origin BE-4 engines take their maiden flight among other hardware. While the launch itself went perfectly, one of the main payloads aboard ran into issues early into its journey.
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Specifically, the Moon lander named Peregrine, which was set to be the first private spacecraft to land on the Moon, was reported to have suffered a serious anomaly in its propulsion system. A big enough issue that it likely won’t land on the Moon and complete its mission. Here I will go more in-depth into the first flight of Vulcan, what’s going on with the Peregrine lander, the future of this hardware, and more.
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Full article here - https://thespacebucket.com/the-moon-l...
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Cert-2 Update via Ars Technica

United Launch Alliance, or ULA, has set aside the next 60 days to review data from the "Cert-1" certification mission that launched on Monday morning, they said. If the data looks good from that flight, the company will move into preparations for the next launch. Wentz said the earliest opportunity to launch this Cert-2 mission is "April-ish."

The BE-4 rocket engines that will power this Vulcan are in final acceptance testing at Blue Origin's facilities in West Texas, the officials said. The Vulcan core stage and Centaur upper stage are also in final assembly in ULA's main factory in Decatur, Alabama. The hardware readiness should be capable of supporting an April launch.
https://arstechnica.com/space/2024/...light-heres-whats-next-for-the-vulcan-rocket/
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https://twitter.com/x/status/1745227814452752446
View: https://twitter.com/astrobotic/status/1745227814452752446


Update #11 for Peregrine Mission One:
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Our flight dynamics team has confirmed that the curved sliver in this image taken on our first day of operations is, in fact, Earth! This image from our spacecraft simulator shows the camera's view of Earth at the time the photo was taken.
Peregrine remains stable and fully charged. The spacecraft continues to transmit valuable data. We are now 200,000 miles from earth, which is about 84% of the way to lunar distance.
Starting at around 7pm EST, we will enter an expected 9-hour period of Loss of Signal, our longest period without communication yet. We expect to re-establish communication with the spacecraft again at around 4am EST. We estimate that the spacecraft has about 36 hours of propellant remaining,
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Update #15 for Peregrine Mission One:

www.astrobotic.com

Update #15 for Peregrine Mission One | Astrobotic

Peregrine remains operational at about 238,000 miles from Earth, which means that we have reached lunar distance! As we posted in Update #10, the Moon is
www.astrobotic.com www.astrobotic.com

Update #15 for Peregrine Mission One

Peregrine remains operational at about 238,000 miles from Earth, which means that we have reached lunar distance! As we posted in Update #10, the Moon is not where the spacecraft is now (see graphic). Our original trajectory had us arriving at the Moon on day 15 post launch. Our propellant estimates currently have us running out of fuel before this 15-day mark — however, our engineers are still optimistic about extending Peregrine’s life expectancy.

On Thursday, January 18, 2024, at NOON ET, Astrobotic is hosting a teleconference with NASA for major mission updates and will be streamed on select NASA channels. With Peregrine operating in a stable configuration and a teleconference imminent, we will post an update tomorrow, but will be slowing down our update cadence for now. Thank you again for the words of support we’ve received for our team.
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https://twitter.com/x/status/1745956321055179100
View: https://twitter.com/astrobotic/status/1745956321055179100
 
Folks: BE-4 has flown successfully, thanks to Vulcan. So an important piece of Jeff Bezos space plans has now flown, and successfully.

I was wondering whether that success could act at some kind of "kick in the butt" to accelerate New Glenn (and B.O as a whole).

Bottom line: Blue Origin is no longer 100% vaporware (outside Blue Sheppard, obviously).
 
Looks like it will burn up in the Earth’s atmosphere.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1746999245968732244
View: https://twitter.com/astrobotic/status/1746999245968732244


Update #18 for Peregrine Mission One
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Peregrine has been operational in space for 7 days and 13 hours. The spacecraft continues to be responsive, operational, and stable, and remains on its previously reported trajectory toward Earth's atmosphere. The propellant leak caused by the anomaly has practically stopped. The team continues to work with NASA and U.S.
Government agencies to assess the final trajectory path in which the vehicle is expected to burn up. Peregrine is now about 218,000 miles away from Earth.
This photo was taken in space today, with a camera on one of Peregrine's payload decks. This is the same camera view as the first photo we received from the spacecraft on January 8, 2024.
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Not good at all that Peregrine will burn up in the Earths atmosphere, I had thought that it would have made orbits of the Moon but now that seems to be very unlikely. :(
 
Let's hope ULA Vulcan gets a better actually viable payload deal the next time than with the wretched amateur hour Peregrine stinker.
 
Last edited:
martinbayer said:
Let's hope ULA Vulcan gets a better actually viable payload deal the next time than with the wretched amateur hour Peregrine stinker.
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It was suppose to have the two Amazon Kuiper demonstrator spacecraft on the first launch. Dreamchaser is the second.
 
Update #19 for Peregrine Mission One:

Update #19 for Peregrine Mission One | Astrobotic

The Peregrine spacecraft continues to be responsive and stable and has been operational in space for 8 days and 16 hours. The mission team is continuously
www.astrobotic.com www.astrobotic.com

Update #19 for Peregrine Mission One

The Peregrine spacecraft continues to be responsive and stable and has been operational in space for 8 days and 16 hours. The mission team is continuously monitoring the spacecraft’s trajectory back to Earth. We remain in contact with our U.S. Government partners to ensure as safe a re-entry path as possible. As a reminder, Peregrine reached apogee on Saturday and is now about 183,000 miles from Earth.
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https://twitter.com/x/status/1747416653300740384
View: https://twitter.com/astrobotic/status/1747416653300740384
 
Believed cause of failure was a valve faiked/got stuck/wad left improperly seated, which left open the connection between the helium high-pressure tanks to prime the MPS, and the lower-pressure oxidizer tank. Helium rushed in until excessive pressure accumulated, rupturing the tank and venting oxidizer overboard.

As pressure in the oxidizer tank decayed, it also allowed the failure area to be under less stress (I gather it was a small rupture, not the tank wall ripping open, and subject to some restorative structural force) and diminishing the leak rate. This was apparent from the status updates indicating ever-increasing lifetimes.
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https://twitter.com/x/status/1748448183628218653
View: https://twitter.com/astrobotic/status/1748448183628218653


(1/3) Final Update for Peregrine Mission One
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This afternoon, Astrobotic received independent confirmation of Peregrine's safe, controlled re-entry yesterday over the South Pacific.

Peregrine Mission One has concluded. We look to the future and our next mission to the Moon, Griffin Mission One. All of the hard-earned experience from the past 10 days in space along with the preceding years of designing, building, and testing Peregrine will directly inform Griffin and our future missions.
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https://twitter.com/x/status/1748448230336082399
View: https://twitter.com/astrobotic/status/1748448230336082399


(2/3) Peregrine and its payload teams have made a meaningful contribution to our lunar future, and we thank everyone who supported this mission. Courtesy of @ulalaunch, this video was captured from their #Vulcan rocket's payload fairing.

Peregrine has flown so Griffin may land.
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https://twitter.com/x/status/1748448447475159476
View: https://twitter.com/astrobotic/status/1748448447475159476


(3/3) Carnegie Mellon University's Iris rover wheels wave goodbye.

Ad luna per aspera.
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There's a question whether or not Blue Origin will be able to keep up with demand for the BE-4 rocket-motor:


While Blue Origin’s BE-4 engine hasn’t had the smoothest development, the current state of the engine looks very promising. For the last few months now, we have seen a combination of increased testing, production, and use during an actual launch. Just a few days ago, Blue Origin revealed that for the first time, they completed a BE-4 hot-fire at Test Stand 4670 in Huntsville.
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For a while now the company has been working to refurbish and prepare this historic site. With this now complete, another large asset in the form of an additional test stand has been added to the company’s arsenal. Here I will go more in-depth into the new test, engine production, BE-4s significant demand, and more.
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Full article here - https://thespacebucket.com/blue-origi...
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They've definitely not been hardware-rich, as it were, but they have doubled the size of their Huntsville factory. It was originally supposed to produce 42 engines a year. I'm hopeful, but not optimistic, that Blue will actually hit that target now that they have a new CEO, and more direct involvement from Bezos.
 
The ULA has started testing the reusability of the BE4, from the Space Bucket:


Nowadays, more and more rocket companies are moving toward reusability. Whether this is partial or full, practically all next-generation launch vehicles have some sort of reuse plan to help with cost and launch cadence. Vulcan however, which just launched for the first time last month, is somewhat unique in that it’s a brand-new fully expendable rocket.
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While its launch was successful, it was the first and only launch of that specific upper stage, first stage, two BE-4 engines, etc. In other words, all that hardware despite its build quality was used once and now is done. This being said, ULA has plans to alter the vehicle and even reuse the two BE-4 engines in future launches. Here I will go more in-depth into the company’s plan, the reuse benefits, Vulcan’s future, and more.
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Full article here - https://thespacebucket.com/ula-is-try...
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Bit OT but it’s the final Delta Heavy launch at the end of the month.

blog.ulalaunch.com

NROL-70: Final Delta IV Heavy prepared for launch

The dependable Delta — one of the pillars in American rocketry for more than 60 years — is preparing for its final mission that will carry a national security payload into space to serve and protect the U.S. and our allies.
blog.ulalaunch.com blog.ulalaunch.com
 
They're building up quickly, I wonder how long it will be before the second Vulcan-Centaur flight (Launching the Dream Chaser)?

On another note why is the maximum number of SRBs that can be mounted on the Vulcan stage six? I've seen the drawings and there appears to be enough space around the Vulcan stage's perimeter to fit eight (Maybe nine).
 
NMaude said:
On another note why is the maximum number of SRBs that can be mounted on the Vulcan stage six? I've seen the drawings and there appears to be enough space around the Vulcan stage's perimeter to fit eight (Maybe nine).
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because there is no exhaust duct for anymore. The MLP is set up like the Atlas V MLP. The Atlas MLP was designed for two side boosters like the Delta IV Heavy. When SRBs were added to the Atlas V design, they could only be attached on the sides where the two side boosters would have been. There is no room on the MLP sides facing the mast or the flame duct.
 
Explaining why all the nozzles are in a row. Big--two methalox engines-big solid again.
 
NMaude said:
They're building up quickly, I wonder how long it will be before the second Vulcan-Centaur flight (Launching the Dream Chaser)?

On another note why is the maximum number of SRBs that can be mounted on the Vulcan stage six? I've seen the drawings and there appears to be enough space around the Vulcan stage's perimeter to fit eight (Maybe nine).
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Dream chaser is the pacing item not Vulcan on that matter.
 
publiusr said:
Explaining why all the nozzles are in a row. Big--two methalox engines-big solid again.
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Here is an example. You post like it is a stream of consciousness and you provide no context.

Who is "explaining"? You? Your second sentence is just a segment.
 
I just stumbled across this interesting short video concerning the manufacture of the GEM63 and GEM63XL SRBs, the GEM63XL of course being used on the Vulcan-Centaur:


Measuring more than 72-feet-long, the GEM 63XL is the longest monolithic, single-cast solid rocket motor ever produced — a designation previously held by the GEM 63.
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As the newest members of Northrop Grumman’s Graphite Epoxy Motor (GEM) family of motors, both boosters build on the company’s extensive history of successful GEM 40, GEM 46 and GEM 60 motors and leverage the company’s industry-leading expertise in composite large solid rocket motor development and manufacturing to provide customers with a cost-effective, reliable, flexible and on-time system.
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Learn how these unprecedented motors are manufactured and more about all of our commercial solid rocket motors here: http://ms.spr.ly/6054ibM7p.
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