Sun, Nov 05, 2006
Delta IV Successfully Boosts Payload To Orbit
A Delta IV rocket
carried a Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) satellite
into orbit from Vandenberg Air Force Base, CA on Saturday. The
launch was the second West Coast mission completed for the USAF
Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program.
Liftoff was 5:53 a.m. Pacific time from Space Launch Complex
(SLC) 6, providing the west coast's early risers a spectacular
show. The DMSP-17 payload successfully deployed approximately 18
minutes later.
"The DMSP constellation has the critical job of providing
specialized weather data to aid the U.S. military in planning
operations at sea, on land and in the air," said Dan Collins, vice
president of Boeing Launch Systems. "The Delta team is proud to
contribute to this important capability for national defense with
this first launch of a DMSP satellite aboard a Delta rocket."
This was the seventh Delta IV launch since the configuration
began flying in November 2002 and the third of the Medium
configuration. This was the first direct injection mission for
Delta IV.
"With this second successful launch of a Delta IV from the West
Coast this year, and the third Delta IV mission in 2006, we are
seeing this new launch vehicle family being put through its paces
and building a record of reliability," Collins added. "I'm very
pleased with the vehicle performance and the dedication to mission
success demonstrated by the Delta team."
The Delta IV for the DMSP-17 mission comprises a common booster
core and first stage powered by a Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne
RS-68 engine. The second stage is powered by a Pratt & Whitney
Rocketdyne RL10B-2 engine with an extendible nozzle. A
four-meter-diameter composite fairing topped the stack and
encapsulated the payload.
SLC-6 is the West Coast launch site for the Boeing's Delta IV
launch vehicles. The site is ideal for launching satellites to
polar, Sun-synchronous and high-inclination orbits. It can support
all five configurations of the Delta IV family.
The next Delta launch will be of a GPS navigation satellite
aboard a Delta II from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, FL, in
mid-November.
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