Arianespace will use, with the Russian, a Soyuz ST-A rocket to launch a satellite of civil and joint army images for the UAE armed forces from the Guiana Space Center near Kourou, French Guiana.
The Falcon Eye 2 satellite is scheduled to take off at 8:33:28 PM EST on Tuesday, December 1 (01:33:28 UTC on Wednesday, December 2) for the satellite to reach the sun’s proper synchronous orbit.
The project was to be first introduced into a Vega rocket, as its predecessor, Falcon Eye 1, did in July 2019. This project ended 14 moments after the start of the moment level when the Vega rocket suffered the first of its two messes. to date.
Shortly after the separation of the launcher’s first forged thruster and moment levels, the front dome of the Z23 engine (moment level) suffered a “thermostructural failure” that led to a “violent event” that “led to a launcher rupture” – a technical way of saying that the thermal coverage formula at the most sensitive level of the Z23 failed, causing the rocket to destroy and payload.
Following the failure, the UaE Armed Forces (UAE) called for falcon eye 2 launch to be replaced via a Fregat-M top-level Soyuz rocket to free him in Vega and allow for smoother, faster operation. launch, theme to Vega’s recoil program.
The release was rescheduled for February 20, 2020 before moving on to March 5. That day, crews discovered a challenge with “one of the small liquid propulsion engines” at soyuz’s top Fregat-M level that checks the day of launch. that the challenge was an oxidizing leak.
– Arianespace (@Arianespace) 29 November 2020
Initially delayed for a “day,” the challenge temporarily postponed launch until April 10, a few hours after its discovery, because the entire Fregat-M terrain had to be replaced, the level itself returned to Russia.
Initially, Russia proposed software for the problem, but Arianespace, the armed forces of the United Arab Emirates and France (French organizations own just over 64% of Arianespace) chose to update the scene.
With the accumulation of COVID-19 cases, the French government has introduced public conditioning measures and closures, all non-essential paintings stopped in the country, adding its overseas departments to which French Guiana is a part.
With the center of the area closed, the project was postponed to an initial target in mid-September if COVID-19 restrictions allow it.
On 30 May, an alarm in the garage on Fregat-M’s upper ground alerted staff to a possible leak of highly poisonous nitrogen tetroxide. A team sent from Russia; it is not known whether the alarm is false or true.
A few days later, the flight was postponed until October 17.
At the end of September, a new challenge with the top tier of Fregat-M was discovered and the launch was postponed until November 3, which was postponed until “end of November”.
An attempted release for Saturday, November 28, local time, on the runway, with soyuz rolling on the runway on Tuesday, November 24, before a release readiness review authorizes the mission to take off.
This attempt was interrupted a few hours before take-off, with indications that the delay was due to weather conditions. The release was temporarily restarted by Sunday, November 29, at exactly 20:33:28 EST. – in T-7 minutes.
One attempt the next day was cleared just two minutes before takeoff, when telemetry may not be well gained from the rocket at the launch site.
The Soyuz ST-A rocket is a key Soyuz 2. 1a launcher that has undergone several European modifications, including, but not all, combustion chamber pyrotechnics, a European payload adapter and a termination system. European flight.
The Soyuz ST-A includes a central Blok-A level (called level 2 via Arianespace), increased through 4 side-mounted liquid fuel impellers (called Stage 1 via Arianespace). These floors provide all the thrust for the first take-off component.
A Blok-I level (level 3 to Arianespace) is the most sensitive at the central level. The top floor of the Fregat-M and the payload tower are enclosed in the payload fairing.
The engine ignition series will start in T-16 seconds, when European pyrotechnic rates will be activated within 32 combustion chambers: 20 in total for the five main engines plus 12 vernier (direction) engines, all of which will have to be turned on to remove.
After the ignition procedure begins, the 32 combustion chambers will reach the initial thrust grades of T-14 seconds, when the critical ignition confirmation procedure will occur in the internal chamber.
Once confirmed, the RP-1 kerosene propulsion lines will open, resulting in total combustion and in all chambers from T-4 seconds. Full thrust will be reached in T-1 second.
At takeoff, soyuz ST-A will conduct a pitching and rolling program to line up for a flight west of the north, placing the payload in its planned heliosynchronous orbit.
Flight occasions are as follows:
Falcon Eye 2, will launch in a heliosynchronous orbit with an average altitude of 611 km. With a mass of 1190 kg, earth’s military-civilian joint satellite and reconnaissance was originally designed to paint in conjunction with Falcon Eye 1 and carries the same high-resolution imaging system, capable of solving 70 cm elements in a 20 km field. from a point of view.
A network of floor stations will participate in the initial commissioning of the satellite and serve as a downlink relay for its planned five-year mission, which will be controlled through Emirati’s operations.
The satellite will have a dual function: supply the armed forces of the United Arab Emirates and download advertising photographs for sale.
Based on the French satellite Pléiades of images of the next generation Earth, Falcon Eye 2 built through Airbus Defence and Space and Thales Alenia Space. Airbus Defence and Space was responsible for the overall design of the satellite, while Thales Alenia Space provided the payload and optical instruments.
Main image: A Soyuz on the launch pad of the Guayana Space Center Credits: Arianespace
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