George Diller/NASA Launch Commentator: This is Atlas Launch Control, one-hour, 50-minutes into the flight of
the TDRS-K satellite. And joining us here at the console in the Atlas Spaceflight Operations Center is
Tim Dunn, our NASA launch director for tonight's flight. And, Tim, first of all, on the surface of it,
it looks like we have a happy satellite in orbit.
Tim Dunn/NASA Launch Manager: George, thank you for having me. Yes,
indeed, we have a successful spacecraft separation. We just confirmed that by telemetry.
So, you might have overheard the LCC reacting and the Mission Directors Center. There's a lot
of happy folks out there and we've got a customer that's quite thrilled right now to have a
healthy satellite on orbit.
George Diller/NASA Launch Commentator: Take us through the countdown a little bit from when we
first picked up with our coverage tonight and some of the things that we worked through to get us to a
successful launch tonight.
Tim Dunn/NASA Launch Manager: OK, I'd be glad to, George. We picked up the count on time this afternoon.
We obviously knew we had some weather concerns that I'll go into a little bit.
Coming into the count, we had a nice clean rocket, range was very clean as well and spacecraft we
were working no issues. So, when we were coming down through the count getting ready for cryo
tanking decision, the primary concern we had was with weather. Fortunately for us, the predicted
weather that we thought we were going to be dealing with was an encroaching thunderstorm activity and a
potential for a Phase 2 lightning advisory, which would have had an impact on tonight's launch attempt.
That front stayed well to the north, didn't have to deal with that, but in its place we had ground winds
that were right on the borderline of acceptability from a structural concern for cryo tanking of the Centaur.
So we spent a little bit of time. We needed about an extra 10 minutes compared to our nominal polling time.
I asked launch director for that. Our team was then able to analyze the additional data that came in.
Simultaneously with that we worked a launch vehicle issue on the Atlas V.
Turned out there was a haz-gas sensor, one of a few in the interstage assembly that had failed.
So we had an anomaly discussion. We were concerned about the structural impact of ground winds
that were borderline and that's why we needed just a little bit of extra time prior to go into cryogenic
tanking before we were able to complete our poll. Once we worked through that, we got into a nominal
timeline, we were headed toward T-0 at the front end of the window. We worked just a couple of
minor launch vehicle issues. During cryo tanking we had a first stage booster liquid oxygen fill-and-drain
valve that did not give us the appropriate talkback signal, though we have a contingency plan where
we're able to use pressure data to tell if that fill-and-drain valve is opening and closing and cycling
as planned. So, we were able to work through that. A little bit later in the count we had another
sensor on the vehicle, fortunately it was tripley redundant, it was a pressure sensor that had given
us a little bit of noisy data. So, we worked through that as well. During that whole time,
the TDRS-K spacecraft was being turned on, rock solid, no problems at all. On the range side,
the range had just a few minor issues that they were working. One of the camera sites temporarily went
down, came back operational. One of the winds Doppler radar profilers went down, went non-mission capable,
but the range addressed that quickly and was able to bring that back online.
And then one of their upper-level winds displays was non-operational but we had redundant capability there.
But again, the range team, being the great team that they are, was able to bring that component back as well.
So, once we got down within a half-hour of launch, we were clean green. Everything looked great and we went
right on the first opening of the window at 8:48 p.m. Eastern time and very thrilled with that.
United Launch Alliance to get to this point. And it's pretty short to the next one, isn't it?
Tim Dunn/NASA Launch Manager: Yes, it's quite short. It's going to be a quick turnaround for our team.
We're going to get a little bit of rest tonight. Come back in, start reviewing the data from this mission,
the TDRS-K mission and then get most of our team deployed out to Vandenberg Air Force Base in California
for the LDCM mission, the Landsat Data Continuity mission, which is currently scheduled on an Atlas V from
Vandenberg on the 11th of February.
George Diller/NASA Launch Commentator: Well, Tim, it's been a very intense month here and with the LDCM
coming up as well. I think we can say we've had a very successful Atlas launch campaign here in the last
month or so leading through this flight all the way up to LDCM.
I think the team I'm sure, you think must feel they've done a very admirable job to get us through
these two launches this close together.
Tim Dunn/NASA Launch Manager: Boy, yeah, I'm just thrilled with our team, George.
We have just an incredibly competent team. Just exceptional dedication that they have,
both the NASA government team working alongside our colleagues at United Launch Alliance,
we just have one of the finest launch teams assembled. And I couldn't be more proud of them.
So, George, on a personal note, I would like to make a comment about this launch.
I would like to, as launch director for TDRS-K, I'd like to make a personal dedication of this launch to a
special little girl, Delaney Graley. She's a little 14-year-old-girl. She's battling cystic fibrosis.
She's over in Orlando at Arnold Palmer hospital and I just want to say,
Delaney, this launch was for you. So, we're really thinking about you and praying for you.
George Diller/NASA Launch Commentator: Well, Tim, thanks very much.
And we look forward to seeing you and Omar Baez as well out at Vandenberg.
And we're all on a plane out of here very shortly.
Tim Dunn/NASA Launch Manager: Very shortly, looking forward to it, George.
That will conclude our coverage of tonight's Atlas V launch with the TDRS-K Tracking and Data Relay Satellite.
From the Atlas Spaceflight Operations Center at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, this is Atlas Launch Control.