MAVEN Launch Thread: Launch Currently Scheduled for November 18th @ 1:28 PM

[B787_300]

Currently in Orbit of 170*87 NM

[Meithan]

MAVEN is on coast phase. All nominal. Current orbit: 178 x 315 km.

[Kryten]

That's MAVEN in parking orbit. Transfer burn is in about twenty minutes.

[Meithan]

I wish they stopped showing replays of the launch and showed us the orbital telemetry data instead. More fun to watch

[nhnifong]

I wish they'd show us the map view on NASA TV

[Meithan]

It was impressive to see how slowly the rocket climbs at first. I wonder what's the TWR at liftoff of that thing?

I looked up the numbers. MAVEN weighs about 2500 kg, while the Atlas V 401 launch rocket weighs about 334,500 kg and its first stage produces about 3,827 kN of thrust at sea level. That computes to a thrust-to-weight ratio at liftoff of 1.16. Makes sense.

Edited November 18, 2013 by Meithan

[Kryten]

It was impressive to see how slowly the rocket climbs at first. I wonder what's the TWR at liftoff of that thing?

Just over 1.3. It's usually augmented with solids.

[nhnifong]

Why is the centaur pulsing it's forward translational attitude thrusters?

[Meithan]

Good question. Its apogee seems to be decreasing slightly.

[DonLorenzo]

probably to maintain attitude?

[Meithan]

Five minutes to Mars transfer burn

[PakledHostage]

Just crossing east coast of Madagascar. LH2 prestart, preparing for transfer burn.

[Meithan]

Transfer burn started! Keep an eye on the apogee!

[B787_300]

Why is the centaur pulsing it's forward translational attitude thrusters?

to keep the fuel in the pipes and acting like there was gravity...

[Meithan]

Orbital eccentricity at 0.5, apogee 13,300 km.

[Martijn404]

I can just seeeeee (imagine) the blue ellipse getting wider and wider away from K.. Earth.

The graphics are horrible though. I just wish they'd use Kerbal to feed the telemetry data into, and show split screen Map view and see how the Mars encounter is achieved directly from the injection burn.

[Meithan]

to keep the fuel in the pipes and acting like there was gravity...

Aren't the tanks pressurized to push the fuel, so gravity isn't needed?

[Meithan]

Now on hyperbolic escape orbit!

[Martijn404]

We exited the Earth SOI! Negative Apogee Altitude

[nhnifong]

I can just seeeeee (imagine) the blue ellipse getting wider and wider away from K.. Earth.

The graphics are horrible though. I just wish they'd use Kerbal to feed the telemetry data into, and show split screen Map view and see how the Mars encounter is achieved directly from the injection burn.

Maybe some of our entrepreneuring programmers could write a mod for that which pulls live telemetry data from some nasa page.

[Mr. Entropy]

Here's the part where you wish time acceleration was a thing.

[Meithan]

Two minutes to spacecraft separation.

[ZRM]

Maybe some of our entrepreneuring programmers could write a mod for that which pulls live telemetry data from some nasa page.

Is there such a page? That would be very handy.

[engraverwilliam]

My co-workers told me while we where watching the launch "that game you play at lunch looks better then what they are showing us"

[scorchdestroya]

Separation!