{"id":55130,"date":"2019-06-25T10:08:00","date_gmt":"2019-06-25T14:08:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/?migration=converted-node-447685"},"modified":"2023-07-26T15:18:58","modified_gmt":"2023-07-26T19:18:58","slug":"nasa-technology-missions-launch-on-spacex-falcon-heavy","status":"publish","type":"press-release","link":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/news-release\/nasa-technology-missions-launch-on-spacex-falcon-heavy\/","title":{"rendered":"NASA Technology Missions Launch on SpaceX Falcon Heavy"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-none \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1409\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg?w=2048\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"falcon heavy launch\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg 4253w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg?resize=300,206 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg?resize=768,529 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg?resize=1024,705 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg?resize=1536,1057 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg?resize=2048,1409 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg?resize=400,275 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg?resize=600,413 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg?resize=900,619 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg?resize=1200,826 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg?resize=2000,1376 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" loading=\"eager\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket carrying 24 satellites as part of the Department of Defense\u2019s Space Test Program-2 (STP-2) mission launches from Launch Complex 39A, Tuesday, June 25, 2019 at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The satellites include four NASA technology and science payloads that will study non-toxic spacecraft fuel, deep space navigation, \u201cbubbles\u201d in the electrically-charged layers of Earth\u2019s upper atmosphere, and radiation protection for satellites. <strong>Credits: NASA\/Joel Kowsky<\/strong><\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>NASA technology demonstrations, which one day could help the agency get astronauts to Mars, and science missions, which will look at the space environment around Earth and how it affects us, have launched into space on a Falcon Heavy rocket.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The NASA missions lifted off at 2:30 a.m. EDT Tuesday from NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, as part of the Department of Defense\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.spacex.com\/stp-2\" rel=\"noopener\">Space Test Program-2<\/a> (STP-2) launch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThis launch was a true partnership across government and industry, and it marked an incredible first for the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center,\u201d said Jim Reuter, associate administrator for NASA\u2019s Space Technology Mission Directorate. \u201cThe NASA missions aboard the Falcon Heavy also benefited from strong collaborations with industry, academia and other government organizations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The missions, each with a unique set of objectives, will aid in smarter spacecraft design and benefit the agency\u2019s Moon to Mars exploration plans by providing greater insight into the effects of radiation in space and testing an atomic clock that could change how spacecraft navigate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With launch and deployments complete, the missions will start to power on, communicate with Earth and collect data. They each will operate for about a year, providing enough time to mature the technologies and collect valuable science data. Below is more information about each mission, including notional timelines for key milestones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Enhanced Tandem Beacon Experiment<\/strong><br>\nTwo NASA CubeSats making up the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/e-tbex\/\">Enhanced Tandem Beacon Experiment<\/a> (E-TBEx) deployed at 3:08 and 3:13 a.m. Working in tandem with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nesdis.noaa.gov\/COSMIC-2\" rel=\"noopener\">NOAA\u2019s COSMIC-2 mission<\/a> \u2013 six satellites that each carry a radio occultation (GPS) receiver developed at NASA\u2019s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) \u2013 E-TBEx will explore bubbles in the electrically-charged layers of Earth\u2019s upper atmosphere, which can disrupt communications and GPS signals that we rely on every day. The CubeSats will send signals in several frequencies down to receiving stations on Earth. Scientists will measure any disruptions in these signals to determine how they\u2019re being affected by the upper atmosphere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>One to three weeks after launch: E-TBEx operators \u201ccheck out\u201d the CubeSats to make sure power, navigation\/guidance and data systems are working in space as expected.<\/li><li>Approximately three weeks after launch: Science beacons that send signals to antennas on Earth power up and begin transmitting to ground stations.<\/li><li>About one year after launch: E-TBEx mission ends.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Deep Space Atomic Clock<\/strong><br>\nNASA\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/mission_pages\/tdm\/clock\/index.html\">Deep Space Atomic Clock<\/a> is a toaster oven-sized instrument traveling aboard a commercial satellite that was released into low-Earth orbit at 3:54 a.m. The unique atomic clock will test a new way for spacecraft to navigate in deep space. The technology could make GPS-like navigation possible at the Moon and Mars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Two to four weeks after launch: The ultra-stable oscillator, part of the Deep Space Atomic Clock that keeps precise time, powers on to warm up in space.<\/li><li>Four to seven weeks after launch: The full Deep Space Atomic Clock powers on.<\/li><li>Three to four months after launch: Preliminary clock performance results expected.<\/li><li>One year after full power on: Deep Space Atomic Clock mission ends, final data analysis begins.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Green Propellant Infusion Mission<\/strong><br>\nThe <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/mission_pages\/tdm\/green\/index.html\">Green Propellant Infusion Mission<\/a> (GPIM) deployed at 3:57 a.m. and immediately began to power on. GPIM will test a new propulsion system that runs on a high-performance and non-toxic spacecraft fuel. This technology could help propel constellations of small satellites in and beyond low-Earth orbit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Within a day of launch: Mission operators check out the small spacecraft.<\/li><li>One to three weeks after launch: Mission operators ensure the propulsion system heaters and thrusters are operating as expected.<\/li><li>During the first three months after launch: To demonstrate the performance of the spacecraft\u2019s thrusters, GPIM performs three lowering burns that place it in an elliptical orbit; each time GPIM gets closer to Earth at one particular point in its orbit.<\/li><li>Throughout the mission: Secondary instruments aboard GPIM measure space weather and test a system that continuously reports the spacecraft\u2019s position and velocity.<\/li><li>About 12 months after launch: Mission operators command a final thruster burn to deplete the fuel tank, a technical requirement for the end of mission.<\/li><li>About 13 months after launch: GPIM mission ends.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Space Environment Testbeds<\/strong><br>\nThe U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory\u2019s Demonstration and Science Experiments (DSX) was the last spacecraft to be released from STP-2 at 6:04 a.m. Onboard is an instrument designed by JPL to measure spacecraft vibrations, and four NASA experiments that make up the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/content\/goddard\/set-mission-overview\">Space Environment Testbeds<\/a> (SET). SET will study how to better protect satellites from space radiation by analyzing the harsh environment of space near Earth and testing various strategies to mitigate the impacts. This information can be used to improve spacecraft design, engineering and operations in order to protect spacecraft from harmful radiation driven by the Sun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Three weeks after launch: SET turns on for check out and testing of all four experiments.<\/li><li>Eight weeks after launch: Anticipated start of science data collection.<\/li><li>About 12 months after check-out: SET mission ends.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>In all, STP-2 delivered about two dozen satellites into three separate orbits around Earth. Kennedy Space Center engineers mentored Florida high school students who developed and built a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/feature\/local-florida-high-school-shoots-for-the-stars-with-student-developed-cubesat\">CubeSat<\/a> that also launched on STP-2.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt was gratifying to see 24 satellites launch as one,\u201d said Nicola Fox, director of the Heliophysics Division in NASA\u2019s Science Mission Directorate. \u201cThe space weather instruments and science CubeSats will teach us how to better protect our valuable hardware and astronauts in space, insights useful for the upcoming <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/specials\/moon2mars\/#artemis\">Artemis program<\/a> and more.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>GPIM and the Deep Space Atomic Clock are both part of the Technology Demonstration Missions program within NASA\u2019s Space Technology Mission Directorate. The Space Communications and Navigation program within NASA\u2019s Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate also provided funding for the atomic clock. SET and E-TBEx were both funded by NASA\u2019s Science Mission Directorate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Learn more about NASA technology:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"qGgzbYEEW5\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/image-detail\/spacetech\/\">spacetech<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);\" title=\"“spacetech” — NASA\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/image-detail\/spacetech\/embed\/#?secret=Gyx8S3itbL#?secret=qGgzbYEEW5\" data-secret=\"qGgzbYEEW5\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Find out how NASA is sending astronaut back to the Moon and on to Mars at:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/topics\/moon-to-mars\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>-end-<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Clare Skelly<br \/>\nHeadquarters, Washington<br \/>\n202-358-4273<br \/>\nclare.a.skelly@nasa.gov<br \/>\nKaren Fox<br \/>\nGoddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.<br \/>\n301-286-6284<br \/>\nkaren.c.fox@nasa.gov<\/p>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>NASA technology demonstrations, which one day could help the agency get astronauts to Mars, and science missions, which will look at the space environment around Earth and how it affects us, have launched into space on a Falcon Heavy rocket. The NASA missions lifted off at 2:30 a.m. EDT Tuesday from NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center [...]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":58136,"template":"","meta":{"nasa_hds_core_meta_l10n":"en-US","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_editor":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_contacts":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_topic":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_linked_locations":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_related_articles":[],"hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_id":"19-049","hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_type":"RELEASE","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_x":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_y":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_gallery_images":[]},"categories":[2801,3205,2857,3206,2860,2862,2867,2788],"news-tags":[10561],"internal-terms":[10560],"coauthors":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"NASA Technology Missions Launch on SpaceX Falcon Heavy","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/news-release\/nasa-technology-missions-launch-on-spacex-falcon-heavy\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/news-release\/nasa-technology-missions-launch-on-spacex-falcon-heavy\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg"},"articleSection":"Humans in Space","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"NASA"}],"creator":["NASA"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"NASA","logo":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/themes\/nasa\/assets\/images\/nasa-logo.svg"},"keywords":["Missions","Technology Demonstration","Commercial Space","Deep Space Atomic Clock","Goddard Space Flight Center","Green Propellant Infusion","Jet Propulsion Laboratory","Kennedy Space Center","NASA Headquarters"],"dateCreated":"2019-06-25T14:08:00Z","datePublished":"2019-06-25T14:08:00Z","dateModified":"2023-07-26T19:18:58Z"},"rendered":"<meta name=\"parsely-title\" content=\"NASA Technology Missions Launch on SpaceX Falcon Heavy\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-link\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/news-release\/nasa-technology-missions-launch-on-spacex-falcon-heavy\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-type\" content=\"post\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-image-url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-pub-date\" content=\"2019-06-25T14:08:00Z\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-section\" content=\"Humans in Space\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-tags\" content=\"Missions,Technology Demonstration,Commercial Space,Deep Space Atomic Clock,Goddard Space Flight Center,Green Propellant Infusion,Jet Propulsion Laboratory,Kennedy Space Center,NASA Headquarters\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-author\" content=\"NASA\" \/>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/nasa.gov\/p.js"},"read_time":6,"featured_image":{"id":58136,"file":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48124976652_41523f3a2f_o.jpg","title":"SpaceX Falcon Heavy DoD STP-2 Launch","alt":"falcon heavy launch","caption":"A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket carrying 24 satellites as part of the Department of Defense's Space Test Program-2 (STP-2) mission launches from Launch Complex 39A, Tuesday, June 25, 2019 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Four NASA technology and science payloads which will study non-toxic spacecraft fuel, deep space navigation, \"bubbles\" in the electrically-charged layers of Earth's upper atmosphere, and radiation protection for satellites are among the two dozen satellites that will be put into orbit. Photo Credit: (NASA\/Joel Kowsky)"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/press-release\/55130"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/press-release"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/press-release"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/press-release\/55130\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":186471,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/press-release\/55130\/revisions\/186471"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58136"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=55130"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=55130"},{"taxonomy":"news-tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-tags?post=55130"},{"taxonomy":"internal-terms","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/internal-terms?post=55130"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=55130"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}