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HERE is the LAUNCH Happening TODAY that was SCRUBBED on FRIDAY 2/14/2020
<---*(VIEW THE LIVE LAUNCH PLAYBACK VIDEO)*--->
NASA T.V.--->
https://youtu.be/21X5lGlDOfg Feb.15
Antares • NG-13
Launch time: 20:21 GMT (3:21 p.m. EST)
Launch site: Pad 0A, Wallops Island, Virginia
THIS LAUNCH WAS A SUCCESS
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02/15/2020 10:54The countdown began on time to begin final preps for today's 3:21:01 p.m. EST (2021:01 GMT) blastoff of the 14-story Antares rocket from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.
The Antares rocket will soon be powered up, and the launch team is going through a checklist of testing to ensure all systems are in good shape. The launch pad is also scheduled to be evacuated of all personnel early in the countdown sequence.
Propellant loading should begin around 90 minutes prior to liftoff.
Upper level winds, which were out-of-limits for an Antares launch yesterday, are much improved today. Yesterday's winds aloft peaked at nearly 170 knots, but today's weather data suggest maximum upper level winds around 82 knots.
With a high-pressure weather system in place over the mid-Atlantic region, forecasters expect dry conditions today. There's a 90 percent chance of acceptable weather at launch time.
The forecast for today's launch time anticipates scattered clouds at 2,500 feet, broken clouds at 35,000 feet, unrestricted visibility, southeast winds of 6 to 12 knots, and a temperature of around 36 degrees Fahrenheit.
02/15/2020 11:17All personnel have evacuated the launch pad and are at a nearby fallback area, clearing the way for the launch team to begin powering up the vehicle for pre-launch testing.
02/15/2020 11:19The launch team has powered up the Antares launch vehicle to begin systems checks.
02/15/2020 11:31The launch team has uploaded the optimal launch time and final vehicle mass numbers into the Antares flight computer for today's mission.
02/15/2020 11:45The propellant loading timeline sequencer has been initiated, beginning steps to ready the Antares rocket and ground systems for filling of the first stage with liquid propellants later in the countdown.
02/15/2020 11:45These initial preparatory steps include chilldown conditioning of the launch pad's cryogenic propellant lines, purges and other activities. Propellant flows into the Antares rocket's first stage will begin around 90 minutes prior to liftoff.
02/15/2020 11:46The countdown is moving into testing of the Antares rocket's beacon and telemetry transmitters. This will be followed by checks of the vehicle's flight termination system.
02/15/2020 11:47Here's a view of the Antares rocket at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport's pad 0A a few minutes ago.
VIEW IMAGEhttps://photo.24liveblog.com/2452947628981374187/20200215164707_574670.png02/15/2020 11:51Chilldown of the liquid oxygen loading system at launch pad 0A is now underway.
02/15/2020 12:00As a reminder, readers can watch a live view of the Antares launch pad under the "Wallops Clean Feed" tab on this page. This video feed includes audio from the Antares launch team as they step through pre-launch procedures.
NASA TV's live coverage begins at 2:45 p.m. EST (1945 GMT). As a note of caution, the video on the Wallops Clean Feed will not track the Antares rocket after liftoff.
02/15/2020 12:01The launch team is proceeding with testing of the Antares rocket's flight termination system, which would be used to destroy the vehicle if it flew off course after liftoff.
02/15/2020 12:13It will take around nearly 9 minutes for the Antares rocket's liquid-fueled first stage and solid-fueled upper stage to deliver the 16,928-pound (7,678-kilogram) Cygnus spacecraft into low Earth orbit today, kicking off two-and-a-half-day chase of the International Space Station.
Read our overview of the Antares launch sequence for details on the rocket's climb into orbit.
https://spaceflightnow.com/2020/02/09/antares-launch-timeline-on-the-ng-13-mission/02/15/2020 12:25A "red team" is being deployed to pad 0A to troubleshoot unresponsive gaseous nitrogen heaters.
02/15/2020 12:39The red team has successfully reset the unresponsive heaters at the launch pad, and the countdown is continuing to tick toward liftoff at 3:21:01 p.m. EST (2021:01 GMT).
02/15/2020 12:40The launch team is now proceeding with activation of the first stage's hydraulic systems.
02/15/2020 12:55A series of slew, or steering checks, of the Antares rocket's propulsion system has been accomplished.
02/15/2020 12:56The Antares launch team is now calibrating engine pressure sensors on the Antares rocket.
02/15/2020 13:33The countdown has entered a pre-planned built-in hold. An updated status on the countdown from Northrop Grumman launch conductor Adam Lewis shows the Antares rocket, the Cygnus spacecraft and the Wallops range are all "green" at this time for liftoff at 3:21 p.m. EST (2021 GMT).
The Cygnus spacecraft set for launch aboard the Antares rocket is named the S.S. Robert H. Lawrence in honor of Air Force Maj. Robert H. Lawrence, Jr. Lawrence was the first African American to be selected as an astronaut in the U.S. space program.
The S.S. Robert Lawrence is packed with 7,445 pounds (3,377 kilograms) of supplies and experiments heading to the International Space Station. Here's a breakdown of the cargo manifest provided by NASA:
NASA provided the following breakdown of the cargo manifest:
3,501 pounds (1,588 kilograms) of vehicle hardware
2,129 pounds (966 kilograms) of scientific investigations
1,570 pounds (712 kilograms) of crew supplies
179 pounds (81 kilograms) of spacewalk equipment
66 pounds (30 kilograms) of computer resources
The Cygnus supply ship is expected to remain berthed at the International Space Station's Unity module until May 11, when it will be released by the station's robotic arm.
The automated cargo carrier, loaded with trash after its departure from the station, will perform an in-flight combustion experiment before re-entering the atmosphere and burning up over the South Pacific Ocean to end its mission.
02/15/2020 13:49The launch weather officer at Wallops just briefed the Antares team on conditions for launch. Weather continues to look favorable for today's liftoff time set for 3:21:01 p.m. EST (2021:01 GMT).
The weather officer continues to predict a 90 percent chance of acceptable weather at launch time today, and he says confidence is building that conditions will be favorable.
Upper level winds today are much improved over yesterday, with maximum winds this afternoon out of the west at 76 knots at an altitude of 40,000 feet.
At launch time, forecasters expect scattered clouds at 3,000 feet, broken clouds at 30,000 feet, southeast winds of 6 to 10 knots, and a temperature of 36 degrees Fahrenheit.
02/15/2020 13:59Northrop Grumman launch conductor Adam Lewis has polled the Antares launch team, and all stations reported they are "go" to begin fueling the liquid-fueled first stage with RP-1 kerosene and liquid oxygen.
02/15/2020 14:01The countdown has resumed after a 30-minute built-in hold.
02/15/2020 14:03Weather permitting, observers from Connecticut to North Carolina, and inland to Pennsylvania, could catch a glimpse of the Antares rocket as it soars southeast from Wallops Island, Virginia, en route to the International Space Station.
That viewing range includes New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
Here's a map of potential viewing opportunities provided by Northrop Grumman.
IMAGE OF VIEWING MAO COVERAGEhttps://photo.24liveblog.com/2452947628981374187/20200215190310_284074.jpeg02/15/2020 14:07Propellant has started pumping into the Antares rocket's first stage. About 21,000 gallons of RP-1, a high-refined rocket-grade kerosene, and about 41,000 gallons of liquid oxygen will be loaded into the first stage over the next half-hour.
The kerosene is stored at roughly room temperature and the liquid oxygen is chilled to around minus 298 degrees Fahrenheit. The oxygen will slowly boil off during the countdown, and liquid oxygen will continue flowing into the rocket until shortly before liftoff.
One change introduced by the Antares 230 rocket, which made its inaugural flight in 2016, is the elimination of "sub-cooled" liquid oxygen chilled and densified at minus 383 degrees Fahrenheit for the Antares rocket's old AJ26 engines. The RD-181s consume the oxidizer at its boiling point.
The first stage tanks are designed by Yuzhnoye and built by Yuzhmash in Ukraine based on heritage from the Zenit rocket. The liquid oxygen tank is positioned in the upper part of the 12.8-foot-diameter stage and the RP-1 tank is in the lower part of the stage.
The first stage's two RD-181 engines will consume the liquid propellant during a 3-minute, 14-second burn.
The Antares second stage, a Castor 30XL motor built by Northrop Grumman, is propelled by solid fuel already loaded into the rocket.
02/15/2020 14:07Low-flow loading of RP-1 kerosene into the Antares rocket's first stage is underway, and chilldown conditioning of the liquid oxygen system has started.
02/15/2020 14:08Gripper arms on the transporter-erector-launcher have opened, and the structure has moved to the so-called "pre-pullback" position in preparation for its retract at liftoff.
02/15/2020 14:10Filling of the Ukrainian-built first stage with kerosene fuel has switched to high-flow mode. The start of liquid oxygen loading will come in the next few minutes.
02/15/2020 14:26Low-flow loading of liquid oxygen into the first stage has begun, the launch team confirms.
02/15/2020 14:27Liquid oxygen loading is now in high-flow mode. The cryogenic oxidizer will be consumed in combination with the Antares rocket's two first stage RD-181 engines to produce 864,000 pounds of thrust.
02/15/2020 14:30The Antares' Gryo Compass guidance system is being aligned and configured for today's launch.
02/15/2020 14:31Fifty minutes until launch. Fueling operations continue for today's liftoff at 3:21:01 p.m. EST (2021:01 GMT). The launch window extends for five minutes.
Wallops regularly launches suborbital sounding rockets for scientific and engineering research purposes, and the facility has occasionally launched small satellites with Northrop Grumman's Minotaur rockets.
The Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority owns the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, which oversaw development of the launch pad used by Antares. The Commonwealth of Virginia paid for about $80 million of the $120 million cost of the launch pad, with most of the rest of the funding coming from the federal government.
Combined with the cost of the Antares hangar and a Minotaur rocket launch pad just south of the Antares facility, the MARS complex cost about $150 million.
After an Antares launch failure in October 2014, NASA, Orbital ATK and MARS each contributed $5 million to repair the launch pad.
02/15/2020 14:38Today's launch is carrying Northrop Grumman's 14th Cygnus spacecraft to orbit on its 13th operational mission.
The unpiloted cargo hauler is comprised of two modules - a service and propulsion module built by Northrop Grumman -- formerly Orbital ATK -- in Dulles, Virginia, and a pressurized logistics module built by Thales Alenia Space in Turin, Italy.
The spacecraft features 32 thrusters built by Aerojet Rocketdyne and "UltraFlex" fan-shaped solar arrays made by Northrop Grumman.
Cygnus will unfold its solar panels around two-to-three hours after liftoff.
02/15/2020 14:41Forty minutes until liftoff. The Cygnus spacecraft on this flight is carrying 3,377 kilograms, or 7,445 pounds, of supplies to the International Space Station. This is the 10th flight of the enlarged Cygnus pressurized cargo module from Thales Alenia Space, providing 25 percent more interior volume for supplies. The spacecraft measures about 20 feet tall, and the pressurized cargo module has a volume of about 27 cubic meters, or 950 cubic feet.
Here are some statistics on today's launch:
12th Antares rocket launch
2nd launch of the Antares 230+ configuration
18th orbital launch from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport
14th launch of a Cygnus spacecraft
1st orbital launch from Wallops in 2020
4th orbital launch from the United States in 2020
12th global orbital launch attempt in 2020
02/15/2020 14:42Engineers have selected and loaded the preferred trajectory file into the Antares flight computer at this time. This trajectory file takes into account today's upper level wind conditions.
02/15/2020 14:45Three small satellites are hitching a ride to the International Space Station aboard the Cygnus supply ship.
Two of the miniature spacecraft are sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA. Another was developed at NASA's Ames Research Center in California.
The Red-Eye 2 microsatellite is the second in a series of Red-Eye satellites developed by DARPA. The Red-Eye satellites aim "to develop and demonstrate technologies that increase the utility of low-cost microsatellites," according to NASA.
The first Red-Eye satellite launched to the station aboard a SpaceX Dragon cargo ship last year, then was released from the NanoRacks Kaber deployer in June 2019.
"Red-Eye will demonstrate lightweight, low-power, gimballed inter-satellite communications links appropriate for the class of satellites approximately 100 kg (220 pounds) in size," NASA wrote in a summary of the experiment. "Red-Eye will also demonstrate new attitude control components, onboard processors, and software-defined radios."
Two CubeSat-class satellites are also aboard the Cygnus supply ship for release from the space station's smaller satellite deployer.
The Deformable Mirror, or DeMi, spacecraft is about the size of a small suitcase. Developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the deformable mirror instrument will demonstrate technologies that could be used on future space telescopes making high-contrast observations of exoplanets around bright stars. Such precision observations, which will use coronagraphs to blot out the light of the star, require the use of deformable mirrors inside the telescope that can be adjusted using internal actuators, according to MIT.
The deformable mirrors "can correct image plane aberrations and speckles caused by imperfections, thermal distortions, and diffraction in the telescope and optics that would otherwise corrupt the wavefront and allow leaking starlight to contaminate coronagraphic images," MIT scientists wrote in a summary of the demonstration.
DARPA is funding the DeMi experiment, and Aurora Flight Sciences is managing the mission.
NASA's TechEdSat 10 nanosatellite is the next in a line of experimental CubeSats developed at the Ames Research Center in California. According to NASA, the TechEdSat 10 spacecraft will function as a high temperature, accurate deorbit reentry nanosatellite.
02/15/2020 14:46The Wallops range is "green" for toxic and debris rules. These rules ensure debris and toxic vapors from the launcher do not spread over populated areas in the event of an accident.
02/15/2020 14:46NASA TV's coverage of today's Antares cargo launch is underway. Readers can toggle between NASA TV commentary and a clean feed of countdown audio on this page.
02/15/2020 14:48Here's a view of the Antares rocket at pad 0A a few minutes ago.
https://photo.24liveblog.com/2452947628981374187/20200215194821_989301.png02/15/2020 14:49Liquid oxygen is flowing into the Antares rocket's Ukrainian-built first stage at a rate of 150 gallons per minute.
02/15/2020 14:50The Antares launch team continues stepping through countdown procedures toward liftoff at 3:21:01 p.m. EST (2021:01 GMT). Engineers are currently powering up the rocket's flight termination system.
02/15/2020 14:51Liftoff is 30 minutes away.
02/15/2020 14:58The Antares rocket's Transporter-Erector-Launcher, or TEL, is being armed for rapid retract at this time.
02/15/2020 14:58Upper level winds are reported go for launch.
02/15/2020 15:02T-minus 20 minutes.
02/15/2020 15:03Kerosene and liquid oxygen propellants are being topped off in the Antares first stage at this time.
02/15/2020 15:05The Cygnus spacecraft, named the "S.S. Robert H. Lawrence," is switching to its internal battery power supply in preparation for liftoff. The spacecraft is named for the late Air Force astronaut Robert Lawrence, who was the first African American selected as an astronaut in a U.S. space program.
Lawrence died in an aircraft training accident in 1967 before flying in space.
02/15/2020 15:08Stephen Clark Stephen Clark
The Cygnus spacecraft is confirmed on internal power.
02/15/2020 15:09Stephen Clark Stephen Clark
Launch conductor Adam Lewis just concluded his final prelaunch readiness poll. All stations gave a "go" for launch, with no problems reported that could prevent an on-time liftoff at 3:21:01 p.m. EST (2021:01 GMT).
VIEW IMAGEhttps://photo.24liveblog.com/2452947628981374187/20200215200931_984455.png02/15/2020 15:13At the time of launch, the International Space Station will be flying at an altitude of 258 miles over the Western Pacific Ocean.
02/15/2020 15:13T-minus 8 minutes and counting. The countdown remains on track, targeting liftoff from pad 0A at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia at 3:21:01 p.m. EST (2021:01 GMT).
The range is confirmed "go" for launch.
02/15/2020 15:14The launch team is now arming controllers and ordnance on the Antares rocket.
02/15/2020 15:15The Antares rocket will switch to internal battery power and pressurize its first stage propellant tanks in the next few minutes.
02/15/2020 15:16The RD-181 engines will be primed for ignition shortly.
02/15/2020 15:16T-minus 4 minutes, 30 seconds. The Antares rocket is confirmed on internal power.
02/15/2020 15:18T-minus 3 minutes and counting. Auto sequence start. A computer-controlled sequencer is now managing the final minutes of the Antares countdown.
02/15/2020 15:19T-minus 2 minutes. A final slew test to check the rocket's steering system has been initiated, and the Antares guidance system is being transitioned to its flight navigation mode.
02/15/2020 15:19T-minus 90 seconds. The Antares rocket's kerosene and liquid oxygen tanks are being pressurized for flight.
02/15/2020 15:20T-minus 60 seconds.
02/15/2020 15:21Liftoff of Northrop Grumman’s Antares rocket with the S.S. Robert H. Lawrence, sending fresh supplies, technology and experiments to the International Space Station.
02/15/2020 15:21T+plus 30 seconds. The Antares rocket is pitching downrange to the southeast from Wallops Island.
02/15/2020 15:22T+plus 60 seconds. The Antares rocket is flying normally atop more than 800,000 pounds of thrust from its RD-181 main engines.
02/15/2020 15:23T+plus 2 minutes. Attitude and engine performance reported normal so far in the mission. Power systems also look good.
02/15/2020 15:23T+plus 2 minutes, 30 seconds. Altitude now 150,000 feet.
02/15/2020 15:24T+plus 3 minutes. Shutdown of the RD-181 first stage engines is expected at T+plus 3 minutes, 14 seconds, followed eight seconds later by stage separation. Altitude is 200,000 feet.
02/15/2020 15:24T+plus 3 minutes, 30 seconds. First stage shutdown and separation confirmed. Coming up on jettison of the Antares rocket's interstage adapter and payload fairing.
02/15/2020 15:25Payload fairing jettison confirmed.
02/15/2020 15:25T+plus 4 minutes, 15 seconds. Castor 30XL ignition confirmed for a planned 2-minute, 43-second burn to place the Cygnus spacecraft into orbit.
02/15/2020 15:26T+plus 6 minutes. Altitude is nearly 180 kilometers, and velocity is passing 6 kilometers per second. The Castor 30XL second stage motor is performing as expected, good attitude and power systems reported.
02/15/2020 15:28T+plus 6 minutes, 45 seconds. Castor 30XL burnout. The Antares rocket should now be in orbit.
02/15/2020 15:28The Antares rocket is now coasting for a couple of minutes before separation of the Cygnus supply ship.
02/15/2020 15:28The Castor 30XL stage is now firing thrusters to maneuver to the proper orientation for Cygnus deployment.
02/15/2020 15:29Here's a view of liftoff a few minutes ago.
VIEW IMAGEhttps://photo.24liveblog.com/2452947628981374187/20200215202914_742250.png02/15/2020 15:33Cygnus separation confirmed! Northrop Grumman's commercial cargo carrier is now flying free from the Antares rocket, on the way to the International Space Station with more than 7,600 pounds of supplies and experiments.
The supply ship is scheduled to unfurl its two fan-like solar arrays in the next couple of hours to begin charging batteries for the two-and-a-half-day trip to the space station.
02/15/2020 15:41The official liftoff time today was 3:21:04.9 p.m. EST (2021:04.9 GMT).
02/15/2020 17:05A twin-engine Northrop Grumman Antares rocket climbed into orbit Saturday from Virginia’s Eastern Shore carrying a Cygnus supply ship bound for the International Space Station with a compact electron microscope, a flame combustion experiment, a range of biological investigations, fresh cheese, fruit and vegetables for the research lab’s three-person crew.
Read our Full Story.https://spaceflightnow.com/2020/02/15/antares-rocket-lifts-off-from-virginia-on-space-station-cargo-mission/VIEW IMAGEhttps://photo.24liveblog.com/2452947628981374187/20200215220546_266007.jpeg02/15/2020 17:07Northrop Grumman has confirmed deployment of the Cygnus spacecraft's cymbal-shaped UltraFlex solar arrays after today's launch.
THIS LAUNCH WAS A SUCCESS
THANK YOU ALL FOR VIEWING TODAY,S LAUNCH TIMELINE PLEASE KEEP FOLLOWING THE THREADS FOR UPCOMING LAUNCH DATES AND TIMES 
