Iran Satellilte Launch Fails; ESA Solar Orbiter Launch Successful, So Far So Good
martyb writes:
Iran satellite launch fails, in blow to space programme
On Sunday, [Iran] launched the Zafar satellite at 7:15 pm (1545 GMT) but it fell short of reaching orbit, the defence ministry said.
A ministry spokesman said initially that the satellite was "successfully" launched and went "90 percent of the way", reaching an altitude of 540 kilometres (335 miles).
"The Simorgh (rocket) successfully propelled the Zafar satellite into space," said Ahmad Hosseini of the ministry's space unit.
"Unfortunately, in the final moments the carrier did not reach the required speed" to put it into orbit, he told state television.
Solar Orbiter: Watch live as NASA, ESA launch new mission to the sun:
The European Space Agency, in collaboration with NASA, is scheduled to launch a pioneering new spacecraft to the sun: Solar Orbiter. The spacecraft will observe the star with a suite of hardy instruments and high-resolution telescopes. It will be steered further out of the ecliptic until it can, for the first time, image the sun's poles. It's currently slated to launch on Feb. 9 from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
If you're keen to see the momentous launch, you can follow along with NASA's broadcast tonight[*].
As it awaits lift-off, the Solar Orbiter is tucked away inside a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. The two-stage rocket was developed by Lockheed Martin and has ferried a number of important missions to space, including NASA's famed New Horizons mission to Pluto and the recent Boeing Starliner test.
[...] Launch is currently slated for 11:03 p.m. ET (8:03 p.m. PT).The forecast, provided by the 45th Weather Squadron, suggests weather will be good for launch, noting a 20% probability of violating constraints.
[*] Launch will be live streamed on YouTube with coverage scheduled to begin on Sunday at 10:30 PM ET, (Monday 2020-02-10 at 0330 UTC).
ESA will also have a live stream broadcast at http://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/ESA_Web_TV. Additionally, as seen at https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Solar_Orbiter/Watch_Solar_Orbiter_launch_live we have:
Key moments:
03:30 GMT - Broadcast starts
04:03 GMT - Liftoff
04:55 GMT - Solar Orbiter spacecraft separation
04:59 GMT - Earliest signal acquisition opportunity
05:19 GMT - Expected solar array deployment
05:20 GMT - Official speeches
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