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| | | | | | | | | Last look at GOCE | |
Entry 9: Last-ever look at GOCE
4 September 2008 – As preparations for the launch of GOCE on 10 September continue on schedule, an important milestone has just been achieved as engineers at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northern Russia say farewell to the satellite as it is encapsulated in the two half-shells of the launcher's fairing.
Now sealing the slender five-metre long GOCE (Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer) satellite from view, the protective fairing will not be opened again until around three minutes after launch. Then, two minutes after the fairing half-shells have opened and dropped away, the second stage is released leaving the Breeze-KM Upper Stage to take GOCE to its injection orbit of 285 km above the surface of the Earth. At that moment, the GOCE transmitters will switch on automatically and we will receive the first telemetry signal from GOCE in space.
| | | GOCE mounted onto Breeze |
The process of joining GOCE to the Breeze-KM Upper Stage and placing it in the fairing requires great care and precision. With only 15cm to spare, the spacecraft, which had already been fixed to the Breeze-KM adapter, was lifted and transferred by crane to join the Upper Stage. Once positioned, the procedure to join the two together took place and the now so-called 'Upper Composite' was thoroughly checked. With the launch campaign team satisfied that everything was correct, the final task was to apply the GOCE and Eurockot logo stickers to the outside of the fairing.
| | Fairing with logos | |
The GOCE satellite has been at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome since the end of July 2008 undergoing preparation for launch. Now activities have now turned to rolling-out the Upper Composite to the actual launch pad, which is about 5 km from the spacecraft preparation facilities, and integration with the rest of the launcher. Launch will then take place on Wednesday 10 September at 16:21 CEST (14:21 UTC). The launcher is operated by Eurockot Launch Services, a joint venture between EADS Astrium and the Khrunichev Space Centre (Russia).
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| | Diary in pictures GOCE launch diary Entry 1: GOCE prepares for shipment to RussiaEntry 2: GOCE begins its journey to launch siteEntry 3: GOCE arrives safely at launch site in RussiaEntry 4: GOCE unpacked and alignment check completeEntry 5: GOCE checked for gas leaksEntry 6: Launch team reaches full strengthEntry 7: Gradiometer checked and launcher rolled out for testingEntry 8: GOCE satellite joins BreezeEntry 10: GOCE on the launch padEntry 11: Launch of GOCE delayedEntry 12: Satellite activities resume 24 SeptemberEntry 13: GOCE team gearing up for new launch dateEntry 14: GOCE launch postponedEntry 15: March launch planned for GOCEEntry 16: Team make ready to wake up GOCEEntry 17: GOCE revealed as container openedEntry 18: A busy weekEntry 19: GOCE meets launcher Upper StageEntry 20: EncapsulationEntry 21: On the launch padEntry 22: Launch rehearsedEntry 23: GOCE launched and in orbitEntry 24: Going homeIn depth PlesetskRelated links EurockotThales Alenia Space
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