Featured image credit: ULA
Lift Off Time | January 21, 2022 – 14:00:00 EST | 19:00:00 UTC |
|---|---|
Mission Name | USSF-8, two Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program (GSSAP) satellites |
Launch Provider | United Launch Alliance (ULA) |
Customer | U.S. Space Force |
Rocket | Atlas V 511 |
Launch Location | SLC-41, Cape Canaveral SFS, Florida, United States |
Payload mass | ~1,300-1,400 kg |
Where did the satellites go? | Near-geosynchronous orbit (GEO) ~22,300 miles (36,000 km) above the equator |
Did they attempt to recover the first stage? | No, Atlas V is not capable of recovery |
Where did the first stage land? | It crashed into the Atlantic Ocean |
Did they attempt to recover the fairings? | No, Atlas V is not capable of recovery |
Were these fairings new? | Yes |
This was the: | – 1st flight of the Atlas V 511 configuration – 3rd GSSAP mission – 75th Atlas V launch from Cape Canaveral – 148th ULA’s mission – 6th orbital launch attempt of 2022 (6th successful) |
Where to re-watch | Official replay |
How Did It Go?
United Launch Alliance (ULA) successfully launched another mission for the U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command (SSC). On the USSF-8 mission, their Atlas V 511 rocket carried two identical Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program (GSSAP) satellites — GSSAP-5 and GSSAP-6 — that were inserted directly into a near-geosynchronous (GEO) orbit. This mission marked the first launch for the company in 2022 and the first and only planned flight of the Atlas V 511 configuration. The rocket lifted off from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
USSF-8 Mission
GSSAP-5 And GSSAP-6
The USSF-8 mission launched two GSSAP satellites that will operate in a near-geosynchronous orbit approximately 36,000 km (22,300 miles) above the equator. In conjunction with ground-based radars and telescopes, these satellites will support surveillance operations as a dedicated Space Surveillance network (SSN) sensor for the U.S. Space Force’s SSC.
The GSSAP satellites work in pairs: one of them operates below the geosynchronous belt, while the second one operates above it. The main objective of the GSSAP-5 and GSSAP-6 is to track objects in the heavily-trafficked geosynchronous belt that a lot of companies use for placing their communication satellites. This will help not only to manage traffic and avoid collisions, but also to detect potential threats from space objects. Moreover, the GSSAP-5 and GSSAP-6 satellites will be able to adjust their orbits to approach and image other satellites.
The GSSAP satellites are developed by the Air Force and Orbital Sciences Corp. (now Northrop Grumman Corp). The first two GSSAP satellites were launched on July 28, 2014, atop a Delta IV M+(4,2) rocket. The second pair of these satellites was deployed on August 19, 2016, again using a Delta IV M+(4,2) rocket.
Even though the GSSAP was declassified in 2014, some of the characteristics of the satellites are still unknown. As can be seen in the render above, two deployable solar arrays generate power for the satellite. It is also reported that, most likely, they use Orbital’s GEOStar-1 bus as a satellite bus and mono-propellant propulsion system to adjust their orbit.
Timeline
| Hrs:Min:Sec | Events |
| -0:00:02.7 | RD-180 engine ignition |
| +0:00:01.0 | Liftoff |
| +0:00:06.9 | Begin pitch/yaw maneuver |
| +0:00:57.8 | Mach 1 |
| +0:01:07.4 | Maximum dynamic pressure |
| +0:02:00.5 | Solid rocket booster jettison |
| +0:03:30.0 | Payload fairing jettison |
| +0:04:21.2 | Atlas booster engine cutoff (BECO) |
| +0:04:27.2 | Atlas Centaur separation |
| +0:04:37.1 | Centaur first main engine start (MES-1) |
| +0:13:07.8 | Centaur first main engine cutoff (MECO-1) |
| +1:09:30.4 | Centaur second main engine start (MES-2) |
| +1:13:37.0 | Centaur second main engine cutoff (MECO-2) |
| +6:31:12.0 | Centaur third main engine start (MES-3) |
| +6:32:59.3 | Centaur third main engine cutoff (MECO-3) |
| +6:35:48.3 | GSSAP-5 separation |
| +6:45:20.3 | GSSAP-6 separation |
| +7:11:40.3 | Start blowdown |
| +7:46:40.3 | End of mission |
What Is The Atlas V?
The Atlas V is an expendable medium-lift launch system and member of the Atlas rocket family. The rocket has two stages. The first is a Common Core Booster (CCB), which is powered by a single RD-180 engine that burns kerosene (RP-1) and liquid oxygen (LOx). This is accompanied by up to five strap-on solid rocket boosters (SRB). The second stage is the Centaur upper stage, which is powered by one or two RL10 engines and burns liquid hydrogen (LH2) and liquid oxygen (LOx).
The CCB is 3.8 m (12.5 ft) in diameter and 32.5 m (106.5 ft) in length. This stage is capable of producing 3.83 MN (860,200 lb) of thrust at sea level. Each SRB can provide additional 1.6 MN (371,550 lb) of thrust. The Centaur second stage, in turn, is 3 m (10 ft) in diameter and 12.6 m (41.5 ft) in length and is capable of producing 101.8 kN (22,900 lb) of thrust.
What Does 511 mean?
Atlas V rockets have a three number configuration code. The first number represents the fairing diameter size in meters. The second number denotes the number of solid rocket motors (SRMs), which attach to the base of the rocket. The number of SRMs for a 4 meter fairing can range from 0 – 3. However, the 5-meter fairing Atlas V can support up to 5 SRMs, due to the different aerodynamic properties of the fairing. For the USSF-8 mission, there was one SRM attached to the center core. The third number denotes the number of engines on the Centaur Upper Stage.
