UNITED LAUNCH ALLIANCE - FIRST OPERATIONAL FLIGHT OF THE HEAVY LAUNCH VEHICLE

摘要

In January 2007, a Delta IV Heavy launch vehicle was successfully rolled out of the Horizontal Integration Facility (HIF) and erected on Space Launch Complex (SLC) 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida (Figure 1). On the launch pad, the vehicle undergoes a series of launch readiness tests and countdown rehearsals in preparation for liftoff in the Fall of 2007. The maiden launch of the Heavy vehicle configuration in December 2004 served as a demonstration launch for the Air Force's Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program. This will be the vehicle's first operational flight and will directly insert the Northrop-Grumman built Defense Support Program (DSP) satellite into geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO). Achieving this will require three burns of the KL10B-2 second-stage engine, with an overall mission duration of approximately 6 hours. The Heavy launch vehicle represents the largest of the five vehicles of the Delta IV family. The family consists of the Delta IV Medium, three Delta IV Medium vehicles with solid strap-on rocket motors (Medium-Plus variants), and the Delta IV Heavy. The current Heavy configuration has the highest mass-to-orbit performance capability of any available US Expendable Launch Vehicle. All Delta IV vehicle configurations utilize a common booster core (CBC). The Heavy employs two additional CBC's, serving as liquid rocket boosters for added payload capability. The vehicle measures 71.7 m in height when fully stacked with a payload. This paper summarizes the critical events, challenges, and flight readiness process of the first operational Heavy launch campaign.