Expendable Launch Vehicle Status Report

[KSC News Center <ksc@mediaservices.nasa.gov>]

April 3, 2009

George H. Diller
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
321-867-2468
george.h.diller@nasa.gov

STATUS REPORT: ELV-040309

EXPENDABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE STATUS REPORT

Mission: Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-O) 
Launch Vehicle: Delta IV 
Launch Pad: Launch Complex 37, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. 
Launch Date: No earlier than April 28, 2009 
Launch Window: 6:24 - 7:24 p.m. EDT 

A partial charging of the GOES-O spacecraft batteries has been 
performed and a power command functional test of the spacecraft power 
subsystem has been successfully completed. Spacecraft fueling 
operations began with the loading of oxidizer into the onboard fuel 
tanks on March 30. The hydrazine fuel was done on April 1.

Mating GOES-O to the Delta IV rocket payload attach fitting for flight 
is planned for April 4 and will be followed by encapsulation into the 
fairing on April 6. The move to Launch Complex 37 for mating to the 
Delta IV is scheduled for April 14.

At Launch Complex 37, checkout of the Delta IV is on schedule. A 
simulated flight test exercising the launch vehicle systems as they 
will function during launch has been was successfully completed. The 
"wet dress rehearsal," a countdown dress rehearsal with the rocket 
fully fueled, is planned for April 8. 

NASA has contracted with Boeing to build and launch the GOES-O 
spacecraft. The NASA Launch Services Program at Kennedy is supporting 
the launch in an advisory role. NASA spacecraft project management 
for GOES-O is the responsibility of NASAâ??s Goddard Space Flight 
Center. After launch, once Boeing and NASA have completed on-orbit 
checkout and the spacecraft is operational, it will be turned over to 
NOAA. 



Mission: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter/Lunar Crater Observation and 
Sensing Satellite (LRO/LCROSS) 
Launch Vehicle: Atlas V 
Launch Pad: Launch Complex 41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. 
Launch Date: No earlier than June 2, 2009 
Launch Window: TBD 

The launch of LRO/LCROSS has been rescheduled to no earlier than June 
2. This will enable sufficient time to be built back into the Atlas V 
processing schedule to support launch. The processing schedule became 
insufficient after the launch postponement of the Atlas V for the 
non-NASA mission currently on the launch pad. 

This week the LRO spacecraft team has been performing mission launch 
rehearsals, liftoff through lunar insertion. The solar arrays are 
planned for installation on April 8. 

The LCROSS spacecraft team is performing electrical testing. 



Previous status reports are available at:

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/launchingrockets/status/index.html 
 

	
-end-



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