(C39) Post Scriptum-2 from GEO orbit: MSG-4 First image

As expected, the MSG-4 first image (full disc) generated by the SEVIRI instrument was delivered by EUMETSAT on 04/08/2015 @10:00 UTC (12:00 Darmstadt time).

This is the evidence that MSG-4 (called MET-11 in its operational life) is in good health. With no big surprise one can notice that the sky over Noordwijk is covered with clouds while sun is shinning in Cannes :-). On the left side of the picture, one can also see the overcast French Guiana coast  from where the MSG-4 journey started three weeks ago...

(C38) Post Scriptum-1 from Darmstadt

As explained in the last post, just after launch, the MSG-4 teams based in French Guiana packed their stuff and flown back to Europe because their job to prepare the Spacecraft for launch and get it into orbit was completed. In the meantime, another team was getting prepared: the LEOP (Launch and Early Operation Phase) Project Support Team. This team composed of people from Thales Alenia Space, Astrium, Selex, ESA and EUMETSAT was present in ESOC (European Space Operation Center) located in Darmstadt, Germany, few days before the launch. Their role was to advice regarding spacecraft aspects the ESOC team that was in charge of the deployment of the spacecraft in its final orbit and operational configuration before the hand over to the end customer (EUMETSAT). These activities have been described step by step in a separate post:  MSG-4 milestones.

This is a view of the control room in ESOC where these operations have  taken  place from 15/07/2015 to 24/07/2015.

 

Credits: Stéfane

ESOC Control room 

The picture below is not extracted from the Muppet Show. We confirm that ESOC  use its own set of mascots to support the SOM (Spacecraft Operation Manager) in charge in the difficult decisions he has to take. We assume that the four mascots below were allocated to MSG-1, MSG-2, MSG-3 and MSG-4... Anyway they can be proud of the job they made and they get, en passant, greeted by Toco on its way back to Europe :-)

 

Credits: Stéfane

Now a picture of  the dream team who completed the work during this crucial but  successful ten days:

 

Credits: Stéfane

1st row (left to right): Stéphane, Hans-Jürgen, Bernard, Stéphane, Odile, Jacques, Maurice,

2nd row (from left to right): Stefano, Ferran, Francesca, Chiara, Donato

Even if not on the picture, Denis, Orion, Jean-Philippe, Norbert, Frank and Wolfgang participated to the LEOP and should not be forgotten! Congratulations to all for this remarkable achievement.

As a tradition, after the completion of the LEOP (and the party :-), the MSG-4 name is eventually "engraved" on the wall of the ESOC Control Room.  

 

Credits: Stéfane 

The exhaustive list of all missions supported by ESOC

Another page of the Space History has been written. Look! what an honour to stand so close to Philae, the ESA robot which landed on comet67 Churyumov-Gerasimenko!  MSG-4 can be proud: A(nother) star is born! Long life to the MSG family and good luck to our EUMETSAT colleagues for the coming weeks and years.

L0 Launch attempt 15/07/2015

Follow the MSG-4 launch live on Arianespace TV, ESA, and EUMETSAT web sites.

All time of the chronology below are local/Kourou time (i.e. Universal Time -3 hours)

The launch window starts today 15/07/2015 at H0 18:42

Duration of the Launch window: 37 minutes,
Launch windows ends at 19:19.

07:10 am: Arriving at S1 B (few kilometers from the launch pad). An overview of the the weather over the place this morning: wet and cloudy, no rain and light breeze.

07:30 @ EPCU S1B LBC2. The D-Day has started. Arrival of the teams.

 View on LBC 2 (satellite control room) just before the arrival of the teams

08:39 am (H0-10h03m) ; Start of the Countdown in Jupiter

09:40 am (H0-9h02m): MSG-4 is authorised to be switched on

In the meantime we got a visitor to support us in the LBC2...perched next to Jean-Claude, the RPS (Spacecraft Preparation Manager).

 

Toco, MSG-4 mascot

10:07 am (H0-08h35m): the RPS is asked to test Spacecraft RED status (Green back 10 minutes later)...

11:27 am  (H0-07h15m): MSG-4 Status for meteo debrief: MSG status is green. S/C is ON. Temperatures are OK.

12:01  (H0-06h41m):  Meteo is GREEN (in particular high altitude wind are OK) 

12:12 (H0-06h30m ): MSG-4 RF transmitter in ON. Below, Gérard in front of the RF bays. Telemetry received by ESOC via NDIU.

13:11 (H0-05h31m): All parameters in Jupiter 2 are GREEN.

13:30 (H0-05h12): Meteo is confirmed GREEN (no requirement anymore for EOLE plan. Launch attempt targeted for H0)

13:58 (H0-04h44m): All parameters GREEN 

 in the meantime, there is evidence from the wall monitors in S1B giving live views from the launch pad, that the cryogenic fueling of the launcher has started.

15:37 (H0-03h05m): Status of the MSG-4 Spacecraft is GREEN

15:45 (H0-02h57m): View on the launcher on the ELA-3 (from wall monitor).

 

16:42 (H0-02h00m): Status of the MSG-4 Spacecraft is GREEN. All parameters in Jupiter 2 are GREEN.

17:17 (H0-01h25m):  Status of the MSG-4 Spacecraft is GREEN.

17:42 (H0-01h00m):  Status of the MSG-4 Spacecraft is GREEN. Meteo is confirmed GREEN. Below a quick look on the LBC-2 clocks: the first line UT and second line count down.Still one hour to go!, We get closer.

 

LBC-2 clocks 

18:10 (H0-32m00s):  Status of the MSG-4 Spacecraft is GREEN.

18:20 (H0-22m00s): MSG can go on internal power.

18:31 (H0-11m00s) MSG on internal Power and Status of the MSG-4 Spacecraft is GREEN. Meteo is GREEN. 

18:35 (H0-07m00s): Start of the synchronized sequence.

18:42 (H0) and lift-off. 

19:22 (H0+40m22s): MSG-4 Separation. Mission is declared successful! 

 

Separation from the launcher...Bye Bye MSG-4!

Credits: Arianespace

It is time now to celebrate in LBC-2.

And now the LEOP team in ESOC (Darmstadt) will take over... All the best from Kourou!

L-1 Bis Launcher on ELA-3

The Ariane 5 Launcher for the VA-224 mission spent its first night on the ELA-3 Launch pad.

 

Credits: CNES/AE

Due to the French national day on 14th of July, there were not enough resources at work in French Guyana required for a Launch. This means that the Ariane 5 launcher had to stay during this Bastille day on the ELA-3 launch pad. During these additional 24 hours, ThalesAleniaSpace performed few routine activities on MSG-4 (e.g. battery charging…). On the launcher side, the ventilation under the fairing will be continued in order to keep the critical items (tanks and batteries) under their required limits. This is necessary as the temperature under the sun during the day can be close to 40 deg. C. So far all monitoring measurements are well within the specifications required for the launch. It is noteworthy to mention that the weather this morning in Kourou was overcasted and rainy. The picture below gives a nice day view of the launcher on its launch pad.

Credits: CNES/AE

From the S1B, the wall monitors give now live views of the launcher on its pad and also close up on  the Vulcain engine.

 

Vulcain Enine of the Ariane 5 Launcher

If everything goes well, tomorrow (15/07), 10 seconds before 18:42 (Kourou time, i.e 23:42 Western Europe time), Damien should pronounce from Jupiter 2 these well known and formal words:

-A tous de DDO,  Attention pour le décompte final, 10, ...

Follow with us the final chronology, tomorrow 15/07 starting from 07:30 am (Kourou time).

(C35) Last inspection of MSG-4

The additional inspection of the StarOneC4 spacecraft has taken place during the last week end and has fortunately revealed no issues. As a consequence, the upper composite (StarOneC4/Sylda/Fairing) has been re-assembled. Today (06/07), a last inspection of MSG-4 spacecraft took place in oder to prepare for the second re-encapsulation planned tomorrow (07/07). In parallel to this inspection, the two caps protecting the two axial thrusters from contamination during this short stand-by period have been removed.

 

Two axial  thruster protective caps (Non Flight also called Red Tag items) before being stowed in the drawers of the Flight Non flight chest

A new detailed planning for this last bit of the campaign is being discussed; MSG-4 launch should be very soon back on track!

(C34) De-mating of the Upper Composite

As explained in the last post (02/07), an unexpected inspection of the satellite in upper position was granted by Arianespace. To allow this inspection, the de-mating of the Upper Composite was necessary. In order not to loose time, this activity started early on the Friday 03/07. The de-mating of an upper composite with a long fairing is an operation that has apparently never taken place before. The pictures below reflect in short what has been performed this Friday.

1-View of the Upper Composite at the start of the activities from the BAF PFES (PlateForme Elévatrice Supérieure)

2-De-encapsulation of MSG-4

 3-Lifting of the Upper Composite, view of the MSG-4 Main Communication Platform

4-Getting the Upper Composite on the ground floor in the BAF Airlock

5-During the inspection of StarOneC4, MSG-4 stays mated on the Ariane 5 launcher with adequate protections at the interface level. Few red tag items items have been re-installed mainly to protect the spacecraft from contamination. We all expect this unexpected standby phase will not last too long.

P.S.:We could have given this post other titles like " Déjà vu" or may be better "Hello again" :-)

Keep you posted.

(C33) Breaking news

An unexpected inspection of the StarOne C4 spacecraft has been requested and accepted by Arianespace. It has then been decided today (02/07) to remove the upper composite (Fairing/StarOneC4/Sylda) from the Ariane 5 launcher. Then the removal of the fairing will be made in order to perform this last inspection. These are obviously complex and hazardous operations which will take time. This means that the present POC needs to be revisited and the launch date of July the 8th is no longer feasible. A new planning and a new launch date will be released shortly. 

The MSG-4 teams learned these news today while they were rehearsing the countdown. Despite an evident disappointment the teams are ready for this new challenge.
We all love French Guiana,

...provided we have not to stay here life long :-)

(C32) L-5 Dress rehearsal

The dress rehearsal of the count down for the VA-224 mission took place today (02/07). This activity  is a rehearsal of the Launch Day chronology  with all the parties involved :

• the MSG-4 team monitoring the spacecraft (LBC-2)
• the Ariane 5  launcher (CDL-3),
• the CSG Control Centre teams and support (Jupiter 2), 
• the local meteo station, 
• the tracking stations (Malindi, Perth, Maspalomas, Kourou)
• the ESA Operation Centre (ESOC, Darmstadt Germany),
• the final client (EUMETSAT, Darmstadt Germany),  

This activity enables the participant to familiarise with the procedures as well as to test all the telecom links used at L-0. There are in fact no significant changes with the MSG-3 dress rehearsal which was already described in the previous blog.

Overall view of the LBC-2 during MSG-4 dress rehearsal on 02/07/2015

 Overall view of the Jupiter-2 control room

Starting at 05:00 am (local time)  this morning ...a long day again for all the MSG-4 teams!

(C31) L-6 MSG-4 has been encapsulated

Today (29/06), MSG-4 has successfully been encapsulated. It stands now in the dark under the fairing beneath the co-passenger (StarOneC4). This "arranged wedding" will not last very long. The two spacecrafts will recover soon their freedom once in space after the launch. This encapsulation means for MSG-4 that the the next time it will see the light will be in space on its way to its final GEO orbit after the launch. It is just a matter of patience.

We may easily guess about what MSG-4 dreams in this temporary phase...

Anonymous Artist, close to the Eastside Galery, Berlin

but this dream should become soon reality!

(C30) L-7 MSG-4 mated on the Launcher

Today, 29/06 MSG-4 which was still standing on the CCU-2 in the BAF airlock, was lifted and mated on the launcher. This is definitely a spectacular operation considering the height of the building which accommodates the rocket.The pictures below show few steps of this activity.

 

MSG-4 lifted from CCU-2

 

MSG-4 over the hatch of the BAF airlock to reach the top of the building

 

MSG-4 the level of the Superior platform (PFES)

MSG-4 mated on the launcher adapter at the level of the Inferior platform (PFEI)

Few checks on the spacecraft need to be done today. Among others, this will include the installation of the green tag items (Flight) and the removal of the red tag items (Non Flight). This final trimming will provide MSG-4 with its final flight configuration. The next step will encapsulation which is foreseen for tomorrow (30/06).

(C29) L-8 MSG-4 transferred to BAF

On Saturday 27/06, MSG-4 loaded in the CCU-2 (Payload Container was successfully transferred from S5B building to the BAF (Final Assembly Building). This distance of 8 kilometers was run by the special convoy in one hour and a half. The pictures below show few steps of this activity.

Loading the CCU-2 on the truck trailer

Special convoy leaving the S5B at 19:04

Arrival at the BAF airlock gate at 20:30 

CCU-2 entering the BAF airlock while the 25,5 tons door opens

CCU-2 in BAF airlock

The launcher for the VA-224 mission stands in the BAF area next to this airlock. When the payload container shown above will be open, MSG-4 will be lifted from this place and mated directly onto the Ariane 5… It will definitely be the highest lift ever experienced by the spacecraft with a crane!

The phase of the launch campaign in the BAF can now start.
Stay with us! :-)

(C28) L-9 MSG-4 on the CCU-2

Today (L-9; 26/06), MSG-4 was transferred as planned on the CCU-2 (Payload Container) in order to be transported by road to the BAF tomorrow.

MSG-4 during the transfer

MSG-4 standing on CCU-2

As it can be noticed, we are still in the S5B fueling place and these pictures are among the last ones we can make of the spacecraft. When the two shells of the CCU-2 (Payload Container) will be closed tomorrow (27/06), MSG-4 will be transferred to BAF in order to be mated with StarOneC4 on the Ariane 5 launcher: the starting point of the "secret story" :-)

(C26) BAF Acceptance successful

On Friday 19/06, while the fueling was in progress, the acceptance of the BAF (Batiment d'Assemblage Final/Final Integration Building) took place.This a formal visit where the customer checks that the BAF facility is ready to "welcome" MSG-4.

 Overall view of the BAF building

As reported earlier (see from BIL to BAF), the Ariane 5 launcher has already been transferred to the BAF. The two spacecrafts, StarOne C4 in upper position and MSG-4 in lower position will be mated on the rocket in this BAF building. This next phase of the campaign is called the "POC" for Plan d'Opération Combiné/Combined Operation Plan. StarOne C4 will be the first spacecraft to enter the POC on 24/06 followed by MSG-4 on the 25/06.
Today 22/06, a formal spacecraft review was held at EUMETSAT/ESA/ThalesAleniaSpace level. This review called LRR (Launch Readiness Review) has been declared successful and confirmed that MSG-4 is  ready to start the Ariane 5 POC.

Last but not least, the Vega launch (VV-05) with the ESA/EU spacecraft Sentinel-2A on-board is planned for tonight (22/06 @ 22:52 local time). This is the last launch before VA-224 (StarOneC4/MSG-4) which is planned on 08/07/2015 at 18:34 (local time)

We definitely get closer!

(C25) Fueling completed

Today (20/06), the MSG-4 fueling with MON (oxidizer) and MMH (Fuel) has been successfully completed at ca 15:00 in the S5B facility. This important milestone in the Launch Campaign has been achieved by the highly qualified ThalesAleniaSpace team. A family picture of this outstanding team including the ESA support has been made for this special occasion.

The Thales fueling team, from left to right:

Maurice, Gérald, Jean-Pierre, Eric, Eric, Sébastien, Stéphane, Ferran (ESA)
Credits: Ferran

Congratulations to all!

(C24) MON filling completed

The first step of the MSG-4 fueling has been successfully completed on 18/06 with the filling of 603.3 kgs of MON by the ThalesAleniaSpace fueling team. The following professional pictures released by the CSG offer a better view than the ones of the previous post on this complex activity performed the last two day.

 

 

 

 

All pictures credits: ESA/AE/CSG

Half of the fueling work is done. The next step will be the MMH filling to be completed by 20/06.

(C23) MSG-4 fueling has started

Today (17/06), the first step of the MSG-4 fueling has started with the oxidizer (MON) filling. The next step will be the fuel (MMH) filling. These activities will be completed by 20/06. These operations are hazardous and require specialised personnel to work in a tight spacesuits (also called SCAPE suits). A fueling session lasts four hours, then a second team enters the S5B high bay to take over. The pictures below were taken from the TV monitors located in the S1B; this explains why they are not so sharp.

 

1- Checking the connection between MON Drum/Fueling equipment and the spacecraft

 

2- First drops of MON were poured in the spacecraft tanks on 17/06/2015@ 10:37

3- Operators have short pauses to recover of the physical demand as the SCAPE suits are heavy and tiring to wear

An important week for the project and an important date in the launch campaign!