NEXT SPACEFLIGHT

Status

Success

Suomi NPP / ELaNa III

Launch Time
Fri Oct 28, 2011 09:48 UTC

Rocket

Delta II 7920-10C
Image Credit: ULA
ULA
Status: Retired
Liftoff Thrust: 3,511 kN
Payload to LEO: 4,844 kg
Stages: 2
Strap-ons: 9
Rocket Height: 38.9 m
Fairing Diameter: 3.0 m
Fairing Height: 8.9 m

Mission Details

Suomi NPP

The Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership or Suomi NPP, previously known as the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System Preparatory Project (NPP) and NPP-Bridge, is a weather satellite operated by the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Payloads: 1
Total Mass: 2,128.0 kg
Sun-Synchronous Orbit

ELaNa III

The ELaNa initiative has made partnerships with universities in the US to design and launch small research satellites called CubeSats because of their cube shape. These low-cost CubeSat missions provide NASA with valuable opportunities to test emerging technologies that may be useful in future space missions, while university students get to be involved in all phases of the mission, from instrument and satellite design, to launch and monitoring.
The 5 following cube sat are part of the mission: (NPOESS Preparatory Project) RAX-2, M-Cubed, Explorer-1 Prime, DICE, AubieSat-1

Payloads: 5
Sun-Synchronous Orbit

Location

SLC-2W, Vandenberg SFB, California, USA

Stats

2011

64th orbital launch attempt

United Launch Alliance

55th mission
10th mission of 2011
54th successful mission
50th consecutive successful mission

Delta II

151st mission
3rd mission of 2011
149th successful mission
96th consecutive successful mission