Nasa Rocket Explodes During Launch In Virginia, Video

Wallops Island (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

WALLOPS ISLAND, VA,  The unmanned rocket originally scheduled to launch last night was scrapped due to a vessel in the waters near the island that would not move.  The mission rescheduled for tonight at 6:22 PM resulted in a complete disaster.

The Antares rocket was carrying a Cygnus cargo capsule, loaded with 5,000 pounds of gear for the six people living on the International Space Station. It was initially scheduled to launch Monday, and Orbital Sciences Corp. got within the 10-minute mark for liftoff, but a sailboat ended up in the restricted danger zone, and controllers halted the evening countdown.

Wavy TV 10 has great coverage on this issue.  

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Orbital Successfully Launches the Antares Space Launch Vehicle from Virginia to the International Space Station

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

RICHMOND - Governor Bob McDonnell today congratulated Orbital Sciences Corporation for the launch of their Antares rocket and Cygnus spacecraft on its maiden voyage to the International Space Station. The launch occurred at the new Virginia Space launch facility at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) on Wallops Island, Virginia.

            The launch took place on September 18, 2013, from MARS Pad 0A, which was designed and built to accommodate medium-class liquid-fuel space launch vehicles.  The goal of the ORB-D1 COTS Demo mission is to demonstrate the operational Antares launch system to deliver the Cygnus space vehicle to the International Space Station with cargo.

            Speaking about the launch, Governor McDonnell remarked, “In just over a week, Virginia has witnessed two historic launches from the Mid-Altantic Regional Spaceport.  The first was the LADEE mission to the moon.  Today, Orbital Sciences Corporation launched their Antares rocket and Cygnus spacecraft to the International Space Station.  These historic launches are sure to put Virginia on the map as a leader in space exploration.  We are well on our way to making Wallops Island the top commercial spaceport in the country.  I congratulate everyone who helped to make today’s launch successful.”

            Virginia Secretary of Transportation, Sean Connaughton, said, “This has been a long time coming, with the full support of Governor McDonnell and multiple Virginia Governors before him.  Space is a key part of the transportation infrastructure.  Virginia Transportation is not just roads, rails and ports – we are space too.”

            Dale Nash, Executive Director of VCSFA, commented from the Wallops Range Control Center, “The ORB-D1 COTS Demo Mission confirms full operational capability of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport's (MARS) Pad-0A.  This is the second Antares launch with eight more currently on the manifest, and it follows the successful NASA LADEE mission launched on an Orbital Minotaur V rocket off MARS Pad-0B by less than two-weeks.  In addition to LADEE and the COTS Demo, two more missions are scheduled to be launched out of MARS before the end of the year.  It has become a very good partnership between NASA, MARS and Orbital and one that benefits the Nation and Virginia.”

            Orbital, a northern Virginia corporation, is next scheduled to conduct a Demonstration Mission of cargo delivery to the International Space Station (ISS).  The Demonstration Mission is the final operational milestone under the NASA Commercial Orbital Transportation System (COTS) agreement.  Following the successful completion of the COTS research and development program, Orbital is slated to deliver up to 20,000 kgs (44,000 lbs) of supplies to the ISS under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract with NASA.  The Demonstration Mission and CRS flights will continue to launch from MARS Pad 0A, located on NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in eastern Virginia, which is ideally suited for ISS missions, and can also accommodate launches to other orbits of interest.

            Virginia plays a key role in national security and assured access to space as one of only four states in the United States that is licensed by the FAA to launch spacecraft into orbit.  Virginia stands ready to continue supporting Orbital in launching Antares on cargo resupply missions to the ISS as well as any other future missions.

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NASA Successfully Launches the LADEE Mission to the Moon from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport in Virginia

English: LADEE lunar orbiter Deutsch: LADEE Mondorbiter (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

RICHMOND - Governor McDonnell tonight congratulated NASA and Orbital Sciences Corporation on the launch of the LADEE Mission to the Moon from Virginia’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) at Wallops Island.  The launch took place on September 6, 2013, from MARS Pad 0B, on the first Minotaur V launch vehicle built by Orbital Sciences, a northern Virginia corporation.  LADEE (Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer) is a robotic mission that will orbit the Moon to gather detailed information about the lunar atmosphere, conditions near the surface, and environmental influences on lunar dust. A thorough understanding of these characteristics will address long-standing unknowns and help scientists understand other planetary bodies as well.

            “Tonight the nation witnessed a tremendous event at Wallops Island,” said Governor McDonnell. “Virginia is honored to have played a role in this historic achievement and I commend the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority (VCSFA), Orbital Sciences Corporation, and MARS for their efforts. The Commonwealth stands ready to continue its support of future missions.”

            Virginia Secretary of Transportation Sean T. Connaughton said, “Virginia strongly supports the aerospace industry and is very proud to have launched this historic mission to the Moon for the nation.”

            Dale Nash, Executive Director of the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority (VCSFA), which owns and operates MARS, commented from the Range Control Center (RCC) at Wallops, “We are very proud to be part of the LADEE team, and I am pleased with the exceptional performance of the MARS personnel and facilities in supporting the first lunar mission launched from Virginia.”

            The LADEE spacecraft has a modular common spacecraft bus, or body.  This is an innovative way of transitioning away from custom designs to multi-use designs and assembly-line type production, which aims to dramatically reduce the cost of spacecraft development.  The LADEE Mission is the 24th overall launch of the Minotaur family of vehicles and the fifth Minotaur launch from MARS. The Minotaur V will boost the LADEE Spacecraft into a highly elliptical orbit of 200 km x 278,000 km around the Earth.  Over the next 23 days, as LADEE orbits Earth 3.5 times, the Moon's gravitational field will increase the perigee of its orbit.  The spacecraft will fire its on-board thrusters to alter its trajectory to allow it to enter orbit around the Moon.  The spacecraft is designed to conduct a 100-day mission to measure lunar dust and examine the lunar atmosphere from an orbit of 50 km above the surface of the Moon.

            Virginia plays a key role in National security, as one of only four states in the United States that is licensed by the FAA to launch to orbit.  Virginia will continue to strongly support the aerospace industry throughout the Commonwealth.  The next scheduled launch from MARS is on September 17, 2013 at 11:16 AM EDT for Orbital Sciences’ Antares COTS Demo Mission, which is scheduled to deliver their Cygnus spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS) for critical cargo delivery.

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