{"id":25113,"date":"2021-01-07T17:22:19","date_gmt":"2021-01-07T09:22:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/spacex-lofts-turkish-satellite-to-orbit-in-first-global-launch-of-the-year\/"},"modified":"2021-01-07T17:22:19","modified_gmt":"2021-01-07T09:22:19","slug":"spacex-lofts-turkish-satellite-to-orbit-in-first-global-launch-of-the-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/spacex-lofts-turkish-satellite-to-orbit-in-first-global-launch-of-the-year\/","title":{"rendered":"SpaceX lofts Turkish satellite to orbit in first global launch of the year"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>SpaceX began the global launch year with the flight of T\u00fcrksat 5A, a Turkish communications satellite.<\/p>\n<p>Liftoff of the Falcon 9 rocket occurred from SLC-40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida during a 4-hour launch window on Thursday evening, with liftoff at 21:25 EST (8 January at 02:15 UTC).<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><b>The payload: T\u00fcrksat 5A<\/b><\/p>\n<p>The only passenger aboard the flight was the civilian T\u00fcrksat 5A telecommunications satellite, owned and operated by T\u00fcrksat and built by Airbus Defence and Space.<\/p>\n<p>With a mass of 3,500 kilograms, the satellite is built around the all-electric Eurostar E3000EOR bus with a power system capable of generating 12 kilowatts for its 42 Ku-band transponders that will service Turkey, the Middle East, continental Europe, and portions of Africa.<\/p>\n<p>Development of the satellite began in September 2011 as part of a cooperative effort between T\u00fcrksat and Turkish Aerospace Industries.<\/p>\n<p>After six years, T\u00fcrksat signed a contract with Airbus Defence and Space to build the satellite \u2014 as well as its companion, T\u00fcrksat 5B \u2014 at the same time they signed a launch contract with SpaceX to bring the crafts into their initial geostationary transfer orbits.<\/p>\n<p>Spaceflight news subscription<path d=\"M7.59009 18.59L9.00009 20L17.0001 12L9.00009 4L7.59009 5.41L14.1701 12\" style=\"animation: initial !important; background: initial !important; border: 0px !important; box-shadow: none !important; color: inherit !important; cursor: inherit !important; direction: inherit !important; display: inline !important; fill: currentcolor !important; filter: initial !important; float: none !important; margin: 0px !important; opacity: initial !important; outline: 0px !important; overflow: initial !important; padding: 0px !important; stroke: initial !important; transform: initial !important; vertical-align: initial !important; visibility: inherit !important;\"><\/path>Space Technology<path d=\"M7.59009 18.59L9.00009 20L17.0001 12L9.00009 4L7.59009 5.41L14.1701 12\" style=\"animation: initial !important; background: initial !important; border: 0px !important; box-shadow: none !important; color: inherit !important; cursor: inherit !important; direction: inherit !important; display: inline !important; fill: currentcolor !important; filter: initial !important; float: none !important; margin: 0px !important; opacity: initial !important; outline: 0px !important; overflow: initial !important; padding: 0px !important; stroke: initial !important; transform: initial !important; vertical-align: initial !important; visibility: inherit !important;\"><\/path>NASA educational resources<path d=\"M7.59009 18.59L9.00009 20L17.0001 12L9.00009 4L7.59009 5.41L14.1701 12\" style=\"animation: initial !important; background: initial !important; border: 0px !important; box-shadow: none !important; color: inherit !important; cursor: inherit !important; direction: inherit !important; display: inline !important; fill: currentcolor !important; filter: initial !important; float: none !important; margin: 0px !important; opacity: initial !important; outline: 0px !important; overflow: initial !important; padding: 0px !important; stroke: initial !important; transform: initial !important; vertical-align: initial !important; visibility: inherit !important;\"><\/path>\n<p>     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"SpaceX Launches T\u00fcrksat 5A on Falcon 9\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/H05-Qvr0cGA?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\" name=\"fitvid0\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-14=\"true\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-21=\"true\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Once properly positioned at the 31\u00b0 East location directly above the equator, the satellite will operate for a planned 15 years for civilian use.<\/p>\n<p>The military use of past T\u00fcrksat satellites has caused concern among Armenians, who protested the launch outside SpaceX headquarters in October 2020 to voice their concerns that the satellite could be used against Armenia \u2014 as T\u00fcrksat 4B previously has.<\/p>\n<p>The protests were unusual for the space industry, especially given the number of military or joint civilian\/military use satellites launched globally each year that encounter no such protests.<\/p>\n<p>T\u00fcrksat 5A represents a significant advancement in space-based operations for Turkey, in particular for T\u00fcrksat, which has used the partnership with Airbus Defence and Space not just for construction of T\u00fcrksat 5A and 5B, but also as a way to learn the processes of developing and building satellites domestically.<\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-72988\" class=\"wp-image-72988 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/TurkSat5A-1-350x350.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"350\" height=\"350\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/TurkSat5A-1-350x350.png 350w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/TurkSat5A-1-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/TurkSat5A-1-1920x1920.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\"><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-72988\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The mission patch. Credit: SpaceX<\/p>\n<p>The under-construction T\u00fcrksat 6A and 6B satellites are capitalizing on that knowledge, being built entirely domestically.<\/p>\n<p><b>The mission<\/b><\/p>\n<p>T\u00fcrksat 5A rode to orbit on SpaceX\u2019s workhorse Falcon 9 rocket, making its first flight of 2021. SpaceX has set a goal of 48 launches this year, including numerous Starlink missions, several resupply flights to the International Space Station, GPS satellite launches, National Reconnaissance Office missions, a NASA asteroid planetary defense test flight, and a potential maximum of four crewed missions.<\/p>\n<p>On top of the Falcon 9 manifest, there are also up to three Falcon Heavy flights planned for this year: USSF-44 and USSF-52, both of which are classified missions for the U.S. Space Force, and a ViaSat-3 communications satellite.<\/p>\n<p>For the T\u00fcrksat 5A mission, Falcon 9 utilized first stage B1060.4, which previously flew the GPS-III SV03 and Starlink v1.0 L11 and L14 missions in June, September, and October of 2020, respectively.<\/p>\n<h4 class=\"widget-title penci-border-arrow\">See Also<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>T\u00fcrksat 5A UPDATES<\/li>\n<li>SpaceX Missions Section<\/li>\n<li>L2 SpaceX Section<\/li>\n<li>Click here to Join L2<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>After successfully completing its countdown and lifting off the launch pad, Falcon 9 performed a pitch and roll maneuver to align itself onto the proper azimuth, or compass heading, to fly due east out of Cape Canaveral to begin the first part of the journey of lofting the satellite into geostationary transfer orbit.<\/p>\n<p>Following first stage shutdown and separation, the booster performed a landing on the <i>Just Read The Instructions<\/i> drone ship located 673 km east of the Florida spaceport in the Atlantic Ocean.<\/p>\n<p>The fairing catcher vessels Ms. Tree and Ms. Chief were staged 786 km downrange, where they aimed to recover the two halves of the payload fairing \u2013 one via a catch and one by scooping it out of the water.&nbsp; Both fairing halves were being reflown from previous missions, with one half flying on the GPS-III SV03 mission and the other flying on ANASIS II.<\/p>\n<p>After reaching an initial parking orbit, Falcon 9\u2019s second stage entered a coast period as it tracked downward toward the equator.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><b>Time since launch<\/b><\/td>\n<td><b>Event<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>1 minute 12 seconds<\/td>\n<td>Max-Q<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>2 minutes 34 seconds<\/td>\n<td>First stage shutdown<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>2 minutes 38 seconds<\/td>\n<td>First\/Second stage separation<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>2 minutes 46 seconds<\/td>\n<td>Second stage start<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>3 minutes 37 seconds<\/td>\n<td>Payload fairing separation<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>6 minutes 17 seconds<\/td>\n<td>First stage Entry Burn begins<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>8 minutes 02 seconds<\/td>\n<td>Second stage shutdown; preliminary parking orbit achieved<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>8 minutes 28 seconds<\/td>\n<td>First stage landing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>26 minutes 51 seconds<\/td>\n<td>Second stage re-ignition<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>28 minutes 03 seconds<\/td>\n<td>Second stage shutdown<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>33 minutes 04 seconds<\/td>\n<td>T\u00fcrksat 5A separation<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>Once there, the stage reignited its Merlin Vacuum optimized engine to push the orbit\u2019s apogee several tens of thousands of kilometers above Earth sea-level into the proper geostationary transfer orbit needed for T\u00fcrksat 5A.<\/p>\n<p>Performing this burn at the equator aligns the orbit\u2019s perigee and apogee points directly above the equator as well \u2014 something needed for the satellite\u2019s post-deployment engine burns.<\/p>\n<p>A geostationary transfer orbit typically results in an orbital apogee between 20,000 and 35,786 kilometers, the latter of which is geostationary orbit altitude.<\/p>\n<p>These types of transfer orbits usually have orbital perigees between 250 and 350 km \u2014 though higher perigees can be requested by payload customers.<\/p>\n<p>Once in the proper transfer orbit, the Falcon 9 second stage released T\u00fcrksat 5A, leaving the satellite\u2019s electric propulsion thrusters to finish the job of bringing it into geostationary orbit and reducing its orbital inclination of roughly 28.45\u00b0 down to 0\u00b0.<\/p>\n<p>Those orbit raising and inclination changing burns occur around the apogee point \u2014 which is aligned over the equator to maximize the efficiency of each orbit change burn.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-72990\" class=\"size-full wp-image-72990\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Tuksat-5a-again.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"440\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Tuksat-5a-again.jpeg 660w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Tuksat-5a-again-350x233.jpeg 350w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Tuksat-5a-again-525x350.jpeg 525w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Tuksat-5a-again-585x390.jpeg 585w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Tuksat-5a-again-263x175.jpeg 263w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\"><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-72990\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">T\u00fcrksat 5A. (Credit: T\u00fcrksat)<\/p>\n<p>This type of orbit raising operation is the most common way the industry uses for bringing heavy geostationary satellites into orbit.<\/p>\n<p>Direct geostationary orbit insertion for large telecommunications satellites is possible, but larger rockets like Falcon Heavy, Atlas V 551, and Delta IV Heavy would be required on the U.S launcher front.<\/p>\n<p>With T\u00fcrksat 5A\u2019s all-electric propulsion system, it will take the satellite roughly four months to raise itself into the proper geostationary orbit altitude, reduce its orbital inclination to 0\u00b0, and correctly position itself at the 31\u00b0 East location.<\/p>\n<p>During this period, T\u00fcrksat operators will deploy the satellite\u2019s solar arrays and begin on-orbit checkouts of its various systems so it is ready to enter service relatively quickly after it arrives at its assigned geostationary orbit location.<\/p>\n<p><em>Lead image: The Falcon 9 for T\u00fcrksat 5A. Credit: Stephen Marr for NASASpaceflight<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SpaceX began the global launch year with the flight of T\u00fcrksat 5A, a Turkish communications satellite. Liftoff of the Falcon 9 rocket occurred from SLC-40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida during a 4-hour launch window on Thursday evening, with liftoff at 21:25 EST (8 January at 02:15 UTC). The payload: T\u00fcrksat [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[479,675,316,3515,3925],"class_list":["post-25113","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-falcon-9","tag-slc-40","tag-spacex","tag-turkey","tag-turksat"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25113"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25113"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25113\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25113"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25113"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25113"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}