SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to launch Bandwagon-1 mission Sunday night, producing sonic booms
Special delivery! SpaceX is rolling out a new series of "rideshare" launches carrying small satellites owned by a variety of companies, starting with the Bandwagon-1 mission scheduled for Sunday night.
The Falcon 9 rocket is scheduled to lift off at 7:16 p.m. EDT Sunday from pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The Falcon 9 will soar skyward on a northeasterly trajectory, a Space Launch Delta 45 nautical advisory indicates.
Following stage separation, the first-stage booster will target landing at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station — generating sonic booms that may be audible across Central Florida, depending on atmospheric conditions.
What is a Bandwagon mission? Jarrod McLachlan, SpaceX director of rideshare sales, said it is the company's new class of rideshare flights that will deliver payloads from 550 kilometers to 605 kilometers above Earth, SpaceNews reported. McLachlan delivered those remarks during a presentation last August at the Small Satellite Conference in Logan, Utah.
SpaceX announced Sunday's rocket will carry 11 spacecraft, including KOREA's 425Sat, HawkEye 360’s Clusters 8 & 9, Tyvak International’s CENTAURI-6, iQPS’s QPS-SAR-7 TSUKUYOMI-II, Capella Space’s Capella-14, and Tata Advanced Systems Limited’s TSAT-1A.
SpaceX already launches rideshare satellites on Transporter missions. Last month, Cape Canaveral-based Sidus Space sent its LizzieSat-1 satellite into orbit aboard SpaceX's Transporter-10 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Station in California.
"On board this flight were 53 spacecraft, including CubeSats, MicroSats, and a hosted payload. To date, SpaceX has launched nearly 1,000 smallsats for more than 130 customers across our entire Rideshare program," SpaceX reported after that March 3 liftoff.
Quelle: Florida Today
----
Update: 8.04.2024
.
SpaceX launches Bandwagon-1 spacecraft 'rideshare' mission Sunday from Kennedy Space Center
SpaceX's noteworthy Bandwagon-1 mission soared skyward Sunday night from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, lifting a South Korean national-security satellite and 10 other spacecraft into orbit.
Described as "a new line of rideshare missions that will deliver spacecraft to mid-inclination orbits" during SpaceX's launch broadcast, the Bandwagon-1 Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at 7:16 p.m. EDT from pad 39A.
Primary payload atop the 230-foot rocket: a Korea 425 satellite for the country's Defense Acquisition Program Administration. SpaceX launched the Korea 425 project's first satellite into low-Earth orbit last December from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
SpaceX's other Bandwagon-1 launch customers were HawkEye 360, Tyvak International, iQPS, Capella Space and Tata Advanced Systems Limited.
"Rideshare missions significantly increase access to space for small satellite operators around the world. To date, SpaceX has launched nearly 1,000 smallsats for 130+ customers across our entire Rideshare program," SpaceX officials tweeted seven minutes before Sunday's liftoff.
The Falcon 9 first-stage booster returned for a landing at SpaceX's Landing Zone 1 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, sparking sonic booms while wrapping up its 14th mission. The booster previously launched SES-22, ispace's HAKUTO-R MISSION 1, Amazonas-6, CRS-27 and nine Starlink missions.
National Weather Service radar from the station at Melbourne Orlando International Airport showed clear, cloud-free skies across the Sunshine State peninsula leading up to liftoff. The Space Force's 45th Weather Squadron had predicted odds of "go for launch" weather would exceed 95%.
Quelle: Florida Today