Posted on 05/25/2016 5:43:48 PM PDT by BenLurkin
SpaceX is rapidly picking up the pace of rocket launches for their wide ranging base of commercial, government and military customers that is continuously expanding and reaping contracts and profits for the Hawthorne, Calif. based company.
This commercial mission involves lofting Thaicom-8 to a Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO) for Thaicom PLC, a leading satellite operator in Asia.
This also counts as the second straight GTO launch and the second straight attempt to land a rocket on a sea based platform from the highly demanding GTO launch trajectory.
Will this mission make for 3 successful Falcon 9 1st stage booster landings in a row? Tune in and find out !!
Engineers have a two-hour window to launch the Falcon 9 and deliver Thaicom to orbit.
Thaicom-8 was built by aerospace competitor Orbital ATK, based in Dulles, VA. It will support Thailands growing broadcast industry and will provide broadcast and data services to customers in South Asia, Southeast Asia and Africa.
The Falcon 9 launch is the 5th this year for SpaceX.
You can watch the launch live via a special live webcast from SpaceX.
The SpaceX webcast will be available starting at about 20 minutes before liftoff, at approximately 5:20 a.m. EDT at SpaceX.com/webcast
The two stage Falcon 9 rocket has a two-hour launch window that extends until Thursday, May 26 at 7:40 p.m. EDT.
(Excerpt) Read more at universetoday.com ...
The left takes skulls, no reason we shouldn’t in this case. CEO should be outsted catering to PC crowd vs. his customers.
Are you in the wrong thread?
Uhm. Yes. Apologies.
Bookmark.
Typo? Should be 5:20-7:40 AM, no?
The "a.m." is a typo. The broadcast will begin at 5:20 p.m. EDT. Launch window from 5:40 - 7:40 p.m. EDT.
PM apparently. 19+ hours and counting now.
I wish them good fortune.
TC
thanks!
They’re tardy in starting their live stream.
They’re now predicting 90 more minutes: ~4:35 Pacific time
Excellent
A-OK, nominal, flawless
Excellent
How do they get the first stage safely back to land once it’s on the barge? It seems obvious that it would tip over and then sink in any storm, so I’m guessing a ship comes alongside and uses a crane to hoist it aboard for transit.
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