Watch Rocket Lab's Japanese Satellite Tsukuyomi-1 Launch

Space.com

Rocket Lab's Electron rocket launched the Tsukuyomi-1 from New Zealand. The "The Moon God Awakens" mission was Rocket Lab's since an earlier failure this year. Credit: Rocket Lab

Transcript

00:00 [ Silence ]

00:05 >> 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

00:16 [ Sound Effects ]

00:18 >> Liftoff.

00:20 [ Sound Effects ]

00:47 >> Electron has lifted off from launch complex 1 and we are 34 seconds into our flight.

00:53 With Electron now clear of the pads, soon we will approach max Q, or maximum aerodynamic pressure,

00:59 the moment of the most amount of stress against the rocket.

01:02 So let's listen in for the call from mission control that Electron has passed max Q.

01:07 [ Sound Effects ]

01:12 >> Vehicle supersonic approaching max Q.

01:15 [ Sound Effects ]

01:18 >> High voltage discharge nominal.

01:20 [ Sound Effects ]

01:25 >> Clear at max Q.

01:29 >> And there you have it.

01:30 Electron has cleared max Q, a beautiful and nominal mission so far,

01:35 now up 15 kilometers in altitude as the rocket reaches speeds of more than 2,100 kilometers.

01:41 Next up are three mission milestones that happen in quick succession.

01:45 First up we have MECO, or main engine cutoff.

01:48 This is when all nine Rutherford engines on the first stage throttle down and then shut off completely.

01:53 Very quickly after that we have the separation of the first and second stages

01:57 and you'll see that main booster tank fall away from Electron's second stage.

02:01 We then have the ignition of the single Rutherford engine on Electron's second stage,

02:06 excuse me, as the mission continues to orbit.

02:09 Those calls should be coming up from our operators and mission control very shortly.

02:13 [ Sound Effects ]

02:26 >> Stage one propulsion holding nominal.

02:28 Standby for MECO in roughly 30 seconds.

02:30 [ Sound Effects ]

02:38 >> Fifteen seconds to MECO.

02:42 Entered burnout detect mode.

02:45 [ Sound Effects ]

02:55 >> MECO confirmed.

02:57 [ Sound Effects ]

03:02 >> Stage separation successful.

03:04 >> Stage two ignition confirmed.

03:06 [ Applause ]

03:15 >> As you can probably tell from that applause, we have had a successful MECO stage separation

03:21 and second stage engine start for Electron.

03:24 Up next will be the fairing jettison where the two halves of Electron's protective fairing split

03:29 and fall away from the vehicle to expose IQPS's satellite to space in preparation for payload deployment.

03:36 And we might see those two halves on screen too as we clear that next milestone.

03:40 [ Pause ]

03:51 >> Fairing jettison succeeded.

03:53 >> That was them there on your screen.

03:55 Electron's fairing halves have fallen away as planned.

03:59 At three minutes and 42 seconds into the mission, the single Rutherford engine on Electron's second stage

04:04 continues to burn bright as we make our way to orbit.

04:08 We have a new view of the engine's nozzle that includes a nitrogen bottle that you can see on the top left of your screen

04:15 which has been introduced as part of an update to the second stage system.

04:19 This is providing pressurized gas to the enclosure covering the second stage electrical system,

04:25 helping to minimize the chances of electrical arcs.

04:28 >> Soon we'll reach a mission milestone unique to Electron, the battery hot swap.

04:33 Electron's fuel pumps are battery powered and once we deplete the first set of batteries,

04:37 they're of no use to us anymore.

04:39 And so we swap them out with a fresh set, ejecting the depleted ones so that they don't hitch a ride to orbit.

04:44 That milestone should be coming up at around six minutes and 43 seconds into the mission,

04:49 and so we have a while to wait for that milestone just yet.

04:57 >> We are now four minutes and 42 seconds into flight and well on our way to orbit.

05:02 So far we have successfully lifted off, cleared the pad and passed through Max Q,

05:06 as well as had main engine cutoff and stage separation.

05:10 Now attached to Electron's second stage is the kick stage where you can see IQPS's satellite right there,

05:16 which is poised for deployment to a 575 kilometer orbit.

05:20 If you take a look at the top graph on the right there,

05:23 you can see that we have about 61 percent of propellant remaining,

05:27 which will take us through to about T plus nine and a half minutes

05:31 where we will have engine shutdown and kick stage separation.

05:38 >> Forty seconds remaining, guidance is nominal.

05:46 >> The stage two Rutherford engine continues to perform nominally

05:49 and Electron is climbing steadily to its target apogee of 575 kilometers above Earth.

05:55 And what a beautiful view we have so far.

05:58 The IQPS payload atop the kick stage is less than an hour away from its home in orbit.

06:13 >> Swaddling down.

06:18 HVB discharge nominal.

06:19 >> As we approach battery hot swap in the next 30 seconds or so,

06:22 keep your eyes peeled because sometimes you can catch a glimpse of these battery packs falling away.

06:27 Reminder that it will look a little different than usual due to the remedial work done on the stage two power pack.

06:33 Let's listen in for the call out for mission control.

06:51 >> Hot swap successful.

06:56 >> That was the call that battery hot swap is confirmed and the mission is proceeding as planned.

07:01 In about three minutes, Electron's second stage will experience SECO or second engine cutoff.

07:07 Now much like main engine cutoff, the stage two Rutherford will throttle down

07:11 before the kick stage separates as it continues on to payload deployment.

07:36 >> Speed battery discharge holding nominal.

07:41 >> All right.

07:42 A quick check in on the dials at T plus 7 minutes and 28 seconds.

07:46 Electron is traveling at a speed of over 17,000 kilometers per hour

07:50 and approaching an altitude of about 242 kilometers,

07:54 which with some quick maths brings us another 300 or so kilometers to go in this mission.

08:00 Now after we reach that target, we will have a coast phase of about 45 minutes

08:05 as the kick stage scoots around to the other side of Earth and back into position ready for payload deployment.

08:13 >> Stage two propulsion still holding nominal.

08:21 >> The team and mission control are closely monitoring the stage two burn

08:25 as we get closer and closer to SECO or second engine cutoff.

08:29 Just a minute to go until that milestone with Electron and the IQPS payload remaining healthy.

08:34 Reminder that this version of Rutherford is designed for the vacuum of space.

08:38 So the glowing nozzle you see on your screen there is much larger than the sea level variant of the engine used on stage one.

08:44 This larger nozzle extracts more energy from the exhaust as it expands, increasing the performance of the engine.

09:08 >> Entered burn out attack mode.

09:16 >> Gain is at some tolerance, 25 seconds remaining.

09:21 >> As we mentioned before, one of the final milestones coming up for this mission is SECO.

09:25 Now we will see the second stage engine throttle down ahead of shutoff.

09:29 Then the kick stage, which the satellite is attached to, will separate and begin its coast phase.

09:34 So let's listen in to mission control for the calls.

09:44 >> SECO confirmed.

10:00 >> And with that, the Rutherford engine on Electron's second stage has successfully shut down,

10:05 and stage two and the kick stage have cleanly separated.

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