MISSION OVERVIEW - United Launch Alliance · MISSION OVERVIEW With more than a century of combined heritage, ULA is the world’s most experienced and reliable launch service provider

MISSION

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A United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V 531 rocket will launch the NROL-101 mission for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). Liftoff will occur from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

When the United States needs eyes and ears in critical places where no human can reach – be it over the most rugged terrain or through the most hostile territory – it turns to the NRO. The NRO is the U.S. government agency tasked with designing, building, launching and maintaining America’s intelligence satellites.

Whether creating the latest innovations in satellite technology, contracting with the most cost-efficient industrial suppliers, conducting rigorous launch schedules, or providing the highest-quality products to our customers, the NRO never loses focus on who they are working to protect: our nation and its citizens.

Beginning in 1961 to declassification to the public in 1992, the NRO has worked tirelessly to provide the best reconnaissance support possible to the Intelligence Community and Department of Defense.

LAUNCHVEHICLE

MISSIONOVERVIEW

With more than a century of combined heritage, ULA is the world’s most experienced and reliable launch service provider. ULA has successfully delivered 140 missions to orbit that provide Earth observation capabilities, enable global communications, un-lock the mysteries of our solar system and support life-saving technology.

MISSION SUCCESS

Payload Fairing (PLF)The spacecraft is encapsulated in a 17.7-ft (5-m) diameter medium payload fairing. The 5-m PLF is a sandwich composite structure made with a vented aluminum-honeycomb core and graphite-epoxy face sheets. The bisector (two-piece shell) PLF encapsulates both the Centaur and the satellite. The vehicle’s height with the 5-m medium PLF is approximately 206 ft (62.8 m).

CentaurThe Centaur second stage is 10 ft (3 m) in diameter and 41.5 ft (12.6 m) in length. Its propellant tanks are pressure-stabilized and constructed of corro-sion-resistant stainless steel. Centaur is a cryogenic vehicle, fueled with liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen, powered by an RL10C-1 engine produc-ing 22,900 lb (101.9 kilo-Newtons) of thrust. The cryogenic tanks are insulated with a combination of helium-purged blankets, radiation shields and spray-on foam insulation (SOFI). The Centaur for-ward adapter (CFA) provides structural mountings for the fault-tolerant avionics system and structural and electrical interfaces with the spacecraft. BoosterThe booster is 12.5 ft (3.8 m) in diameter and 106.5 ft (32.4 m) in length. The booster’s tanks are structurally rigid and constructed of isogrid aluminum barrels, spun-formed aluminum domes and intertank skirts. Booster propulsion is provid-ed by the RD-180 engine system (a single engine with two thrust chambers). The RD-180 burns RP-1 (Rocket Propellant-1 or highly purified kerosene) and liquid oxygen and delivers 860,200 lb (3.83 mega-Newtons) of thrust at sea level. Three solid rocket boosters (SRBs) generate the additional power required at liftoff, providing 371,550 lb (1.6 mega-Newtons) of thrust. The Centaur avionics system provides guidance, flight control and vehi-cle sequencing functions during the booster and Centaur phases of flight.

RL10C-1 Engine

5-m Payload Fairing

Booster

RD-180 Engine

Centaur

Spacecraft

Centaur ForwardLoad Reactor (CFLR)

Solid RocketBoosters

Centaur InterstageAdapter (CISA)

Booster Cylindrical Interstage Adapter

Boattail

ATLAS V With a 5-meter payload fairing and the additional thrust provided by three solid rocket boosters, the Atlas V 531 rocket delivers the unique capacity and performance required for a range of mission types. The 531 launched the first three Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellites for the Space Force and will loft a pair of C-band satellites for SES in 2022.

First Launch: Aug. 14, 2010Launches to Date: 3

Performance to GTO:16,420 lb (7,450 kg)Performance to LEO-Reference: 34,250 lb (15,530 kg)

PRODUCTION FLIGHTPROFILE

Longitude (deg)

Geo

detic

Lat

itude

(deg

)

80

60

40

20

0

-20

-80

-60

-40

-135 -90 -45 0 1359045

Launch Vehicle /Spacecraft GroundtrackPayload Fairing Jettison

All Values Approximate

SPACELAUNCHCOMPLEX-41 PROCESSING

FixedLaunchPlatform


Centaur

Booster

1

2

3

4

5

PayloadTransporter

1 Remote Launch Control Center (RLCC)

Launch Control Center & Mission Director’s Center

2 Operations Center Receiving & Inspection

3 Building 8337 PLF/Adapter Receiving &

Inspection

4 Spacecraft Processing Facility Spacecraft Processing, Testing

& Encapsulation

5 Mobile Service Tower Launch Vehicle Integration &

Testing, Spacecraft Mate & Integrated Operations

VAFB ATLAS V 421

FairingHalves

BoattailISA

Centaur

ASA

Spacecraft

VAFB ATLAS V 411

FixedLaunchPlatform


Centaur

Booster

1

2

3

4

5

PayloadTransporter




3 Building 8337 PLF/Adapter Receiving

& Inspection

4 Spacecraft Processing Facility Spacecraft Processing, Testing & Encapsulation



FairingHalves

BoattailISA

Centaur

ASA

Spacecraft

VAFB ATLAS V 401

FixedLaunchPlatform

Centaur

Booster1

2

3

4

5

PayloadTransporter





Inspection


& Encapsulation



FairingHalves

BoattailISA

Centaur

ASA

Spacecraft

VAFB ATLAS V 431

FixedLaunchPlatform


Centaur

Booster

1

2

3

4

5

PayloadTransporter





Inspection

4 Spacecraft Processing Facility Spacecraft Processing, Testing &

Encapsulation



Boattail

FairingHalves

Spacecraft

ISA

Centaur

ASA

VAFB ATLAS V 501

1

2

3

4

5

FixedLaunchPlatform

PayloadTransporter

Centaur

Booster 1 Remote Launch Control Center (RLCC)




Inspection


& Encapsulation



Spacecraft

Fairing Halves,Base Modules, CFLR

Boattail

Centaur

CISA

VAFB VULCAN CENTAUR

CAPE VULCAN CENTAUR

1 Segment Ready Storage (SRS) Facility

SRB Processing & Staging

2 Atlas Spaceflight Operations Center (ASOC)


(Excess Capacity at Horizontal Integration Facility [HIF])

3 Delta Operations Center ISA & Centaur V, Vertical

Integration

4 Spaceflight Processing Operations Center (SPOC)

Storage, Staging & Final Processing


& Encapsulation

6 Vertical Integration Facility Launch Vehicle Integration &



1

2

3

4

5

FixedLaunchPlatform

PayloadTransporter

Centaur





Inspection


Encapsulation



Spacecraft


Boattail

Centaur

CISA

VAFB ATLAS V 511


1

2

3

4

5

FixedLaunchPlatform

PayloadTransporter

Centaur





Inspection


Encapsulation



Spacecraft


Boattail

Centaur

CISA

VAFB ATLAS V 521


1

2

3

4

5

FixedLaunchPlatform

PayloadTransporter

Centaur





Inspection


Encapsulation



Spacecraft


Boattail

Centaur

CISA

VAFB ATLAS V 531


1

2

3

4

5

FixedLaunchPlatform

PayloadTransporter

Centaur

Booster1 Remote Launch Control Center

(RLCC) Launch Control Center & Mission

Director’s Center



Inspection


Encapsulation



Spacecraft


Boattail

Centaur

CISA

VAFB ATLAS V 541


1

2

3

4

5

FixedLaunchPlatform

PayloadTransporter

Centaur

Booster1 Remote Launch Control Center

(RLCC) Launch Control Center & Mission

Director’s Center



Inspection


Encapsulation



Spacecraft


Boattail

Centaur

CISA

VAFB ATLAS V 551

1

2

3

4

5

Fairing Halves

Payload Adapter Fittings

Spacecraft

SecondStage Booster

PayloadTransporter

Graphite/EpoxyMotors (GEM)

MobileAssembly

Shelter

FixedLaunchPlatform



2 Building 945 Receiving, Inspection, Staging & Final Processing

3 Horizontal Integration Facility Receiving, Inspection & Second

Stage Integration


Encapsulation

5 Mobile Service Tower Launch Vehicle Integration & Testing,

Spacecraft Mate & Integrated Operations

VAFB DIV_5-2

1

2

3

4

5

Fairing Halves

Payload AttachFitting

Spacecraft

Second Stage Booster

PayloadTransporter

Graphite/EpoxyMotors (GEM)

MobileAssembly

Shelter

FixedLaunchPlatform



2 Building 945 Receiving, Inspection, Staging & Final Processing


Stage Integration


Encapsulation


Testing, Spacecraft Mate &Integrated Operations

VAFB DIV_5-4

1

2

3

4

MobileAssemblyShelter

BoostersSecondStage

Payload AttachFitting

Spacecraft

PayloadTransporter

FixedLaunchPlatform




Stage Integration


Encapsulation

4 Mobile Service Tower Launch Vehicle Integration & Testing,

Spacecraft Mate & Integrated Operations

VAFB DELTA IV HEAVY

Booster

10-ft PayloadFairing

Graphite EpoxyMotors

SecondStage

PayloadAdapterFitting

InterstageAdapter

2

3

1

5

Fixed UmbilicalTower (FUT)

4

1 Building 1670 Receiving, Inspection, Staging,

Final Processing & Material Stores

2 Building 836 Receiving, Inspection & Booster

Transfer

3 Hazardous Processing Receiving, Inspection, Destruct

Installation & Second Stage Nozzle Installation

4 Spacecraft Processing Spacecraft Processing, Testing &

Encapsulation



DELTA II VAFB, CA

Spacecraft

Solid RocketBoosters1

2

3

4

5

FixedLaunchPlatform

Encapsulated Payload

Centaur Booster



2 Building 945Staging & Final Processing

3 Horizontal Integration Facility Receiving & Inspection


Encapsulation



Spacecraft

ISA


FairingHalves

CAPE ATLAS V 551

4

MobileLaunchPlatform

PayloadTransporter

3


1

Payload Adapter

Spacecraft

PayloadFairing Halves


Launch Control Center, Mission Director's Center, Mission Support Teams, Launch Vehicle Horizontal Processing & Ordnance Installation

2 Delta Operations Center O�line Vertical Integration (OVI):

Interstage Adapters, Centaur, Boatail, Base Module & Centaur Forward Load Reactor Deck


& Encapsulation



2

BoattailCISA

CFLR

Centaur

Booster

Crew Access Tower

Crew Access Tower

CAPE ATLAS V 541

4


PayloadTransporter

3


1




Interstage Adapters, Centaur, Boatail, Base Module and Centaur Forward Load Reactor Deck


& Encapsulation



2

BoattailCISA

CFLR

Centaur

Booster

Payload Adapter

Spacecraft


Crew Access Tower

CAPE ATLAS V 531

4


PayloadTransporter

3


1






& Encapsulation



2

BoattailCISA

CFLR

Centaur

Booster

Payload Adapter

Spacecraft


Crew Access Tower4


PayloadTransporter

3


1

2

CAPE ATLAS V 521






& Encapsulation



BoattailCISA

CFLR

Centaur

Booster

Payload Adapter

Spacecraft


Crew Access Tower


CAPE ATLAS V 511

4

PayloadTransporter

3

1

2







& Encapsulation



BoattailCISA

CFLR

Centaur

Booster

Payload Adapter

Spacecraft


Crew Access Tower

CAPE ATLAS V 501






& Encapsulation


Testing, Spacecraft Mate & Integrated Operations4


PayloadTransporter

3

1

2

BoattailCISA

CFLR

Centaur

Booster

Payload Adapter

Spacecraft


Crew Access Tower

6


EncapsulatedPayload

5

1

PayloadAdapter

PayloadFairingHalves

Crew Access Tower

Spacecraft

4

PayloadAdapter

2

Booster

3

InterstageAdapter

Centaur

CAPE ATLAS V 431



2 Delta Operations Center ISA, Centaur, Boattail &

Vertical Integration


& Encapsulation



3

2

1

4



BoattailISA

Centaur

Booster


Payload Adapter

Spacecraft

Crew Access Tower

CAPE ATLAS V Starliner



2 Delta Operations Center ISA, Centaur, Boattail &

Aeroskirt Vertical Integration


Testing, Starliner Mate &Integrated Operations

Aeroskirt

2

1

3



BoattailISA Centaur

Booster

Starliner

Crew Access Tower

CAPE ATLAS V 421



2 Delta Operations Center ISA, Centaur, Boattail & Vertical

Integration


& Encapsulation



3

2

1

4



BoattailISA

Centaur

Booster


Payload Adapter

Spacecraft

CAPE ATLAS V 411

Solid RocketBooster

3

2

1

4




Integration


Encapsulation




BoattailISA

Centaur

Booster


Payload Adapter

Spacecraft

Crew Access Tower




Integration


& Encapsulation



CAPE ATLAS V 401

BoattailISA

Centaur

Booster

3

2

1

4



Payload Adapter

Spacecraft

Crew Access Tower

1 Delta Operations Center Mission Director’s Center &

Second Stage Processing

2 Receipt Inspection Shop Receiving, Inspection, Staging

& Final Processing

3 Horizontal Integration Facility Receiving, Inspection & Vehicle

Integration


& Encapsulation



PayloadTransporter

LaunchTable

Spacecraft

CAPE DELTA IV M+ (5,4)

1

2

3

5

4

SecondStage

Booster

FairingHalves

PayloadAttachFitting

Solid RocketMotors




& Final Processing


Integration


& Encapsulation



PayloadTransporter

LaunchTable

Spacecraft


1

2

3

5

4

Booster

FairingHalves


Solid RocketMotors

SecondStage




& Final Processing


Integration


& Encapsulation



PayloadTransporter

LaunchTable

Spacecraft


1

2

3

5

4

Booster

FairingHalves


Solid RocketMotors

SecondStage


Second Stage Processing 2 Horizontal Integration Facility Receiving, Inspection & Vehicle

Integration


& Encapsulation



Booster(s)

1

CAPE DELTA IV HEAVY

2

3

4

PayloadTransporter

Spacecraft

FairingHalves


SecondStage

3

3Time

(hr:min:sec)Event1 RD-180 Engine Ignition -00:00:02.7

Liftoff (Thrust to Weight > 1) 00:00:01.1Begin Pitch/Yaw Maneuver 00:00:05.6Mach 1 00:00:38.8Maximum Dynamic Pressure 00:00:51.4SRB Jettison 00:01:53.9PLF Jettison 00:03:19.3

23

12

3

4

57

6

1 Promontory, UT Solid Rocket Booster Fabrication

at Northrop Grumman2 Denver, CO ULA Headquarters & Design Center Engineering 3 Harlingen, TX Payload Adapter, Booster Adapter & Centaur Adapter Fabrication4 Decatur, AL Booster Fabrication & Final Assembly, Centaur Tank Fabrication & Final Assembly5 West Palm Beach, FL RL10C-1 Engine Fabrication at Aerojet Rocketdyne6 Khimki, Russia RD-180 Engine Fabrication at

NPO Energomash7 Zurich, Switzerland 5-m Payload Fairing Fabrication at RUAG Space

1

2

3

Documents

MISSION OVERVIEW - United Launch Alliance · MISSION OVERVIEW With more than a century of combined heritage, ULA is the world’s most experienced and reliable launch service provider