Ascension Mk1 Flight 3 (Capsule Test Mass)

working with the new Launch Vehicle Designer from ArrowstarTech, based on previous launch data, we've determined our 1t test weight is just too much mass for the Ascension Mk1 to push into even a decaying orbit. We've talked to the NRAP folks and best they can do is 278kg

🚀 we have launch dates for January!! 🚀

Progeny Mk6 Block I: 1/15 @ 15:53 UTC
Ascension Mk1 Block I: 1/23 @ 22:21 UTC
Progeny Mk6 Block II: 1/31 @ 16:47 UTC

future launches are not scheduled yet because each rocket's future plans will depend on the outcome of its mission:

Mk6-I: survive re-entry?
Mk1-I: tech demo
MK6-II: useful if expendable?

See our Ops Tracker for more details on each upcoming mission ops.kerbalspace.agency

successful test firing today of the second K2-X engine. We will have 2 more delivered at the end of the month and our last one in February. The other engine has already been integrated into the Ascension Mk1 rocket set for launch next week

the NRAP test weight has arrived to be integrated, which will complete the vertical stacking of the rocket. It has been designed to mimic the mass & size of the Mk1 capsule, and will test two important new technologies - a heat shield & reaction control system (RCS)

Lead Engineer Simon has reported the Ascension Mk1 is all closed out and ready to head to the pad early tomorrow for another full day of checks ahead of launch on Wed. We will also have a better idea tomorrow what the weather will be like

weather for tomorrow's launch looking good at only 40% chance of violation mainly from the possibility of overcast skies. We prefer not to shoot through clouds - yes there are minor technical reasons but mainly it's so we can get good visual tracking for post-launch assessment

we've confirmed that it's not the rocket that is the problem, which is good news because we can fix the service tower while the rocket remains on the pad, so less time will hopefully be needed to get to launch readiness. Technicians are still closing in on the issue

we've isolated the problem with the service towers and a fix is imminent. Weather forecast has been delivered and tomorrow is looking better anyways, with only 26% chance of violation. We'll conduct another WDR later today to confirm launch readiness

[L-4h30m] KSC & KSA staff are all onsite to begin preparing for preflight of today's upcoming launch! We'll have updates at various points throughout the countdown but definitely at all these milestones:

🌅Sunrise/Sunset🌄
@ KSC (UTC-5)

1/24
#2🌄08:27:59 🌅10:38:21 !!🚀!!
#3🌄14:28:50 🌅16:39:12
#4🌄20:29:41 🌅22:40:03

1/25
#1🌄02:30:32 🌅04:40:54

[L-4h] Flight Director Lanalye is getting the final mission briefing underway. They've been running drills for the past week once the mission design was locked in earlier this month. Here's what it looks like in the Launch Vehicle Designer

here's another look at the mission and its goals. Three main objectives for this flight are:
◾ gathering ascent data to compare to LVD predictions
◾ testing the reaction control system & guidance
◾ testing the heat shield ablative surface

launching again on a 45° azimuth will take the rocket over Sheltered Rock & Ockr for downrange signal reception, which will allow it to travel the farthest distance and spend the most time in space while still coming down (hopefully) over smooth terrain or water

finally, we know from bit.ly/ProgenyMk6B1-5 that this trajectory can go as high as nearly 500km and still not encounter the radiation belt, making it a good option for future sub-orbital kerbed missions. A radiation instrument is onboard though just to make sure

[L-3h30m] flight team is ready, ground crews are ready and weather kerbs have finished analyzing the various regional reports and consulted earlier forecasts to give us a GO to proceed into preflight! Surface conditions around launch time look 90% favorable

rocket is initialized, flight code has been onloaded to the flight computer, along with the various control commands that will be used once in space to test the new RCS system. You can check out the changes and new command additions via bit.ly/AFCS_ChangeLog

all the control files contain just 1-2 lines of code, but we call a file instead of entering commands directly because the code in the files are run-checked for errors. Much easier for the flight computer to spot & handle a bad filename instead of bad code w/o crashing

[L-3h15m] after initialization the rocket was configured to begin tanking operations. Similar to our last launch, as the sun sets liquid fuel and oxidizer trucks take turns hooking up to the service tower to pump fuel aboard the rocket. Ground crews have the GO to begin

[L-2h47m] wrapping up early, still after two trips each for the fuel trucks, the tanks are topped off with a total of 5.95t of fuel, or 85% of full capacity. This will allow us to expend all the fuel on our trip to space and still stay within mission constraints

we are happy to be welcoming back the crowds for another launch, but please remember if you're outdoors hearing protection is REQUIRED. KSC employees will be on the lookout - anyone caught without it will be banned from future launches. Same goes for leaving designated viewing areas!

[L-1h55m] ground crews have cleaned up after fueling & secured the service towers. Pad evacuation underway ahead of engine and ignition system checks. Fuel levels are still being monitored for leaks, but so far no evidence seen. QRT sheltering in nearby bunker

[L-1h30m] FD Lanalye reports issues board remains clear, all systems are nominal. Ground crew moving back in to ensure rocket is secure before everyone pulls back. Flight Control now moving to external tasks such as range setup - today's monitor will be MSV Hoodall

[L-1h20m] Hoodall has also launched our weather balloon due to current wind conditions - it will be either recovered by the ship if it lands back at sea or UTVs are standing by to track it down overland. Upper-level wind report will arrive just prior to final polls

[L-45m] pad has been evacuated of all crew, rocket remains healthy & ready to go. Sheltered Rock & Ockr comm relays have been established. Comms with MSV Lymun offshore east of Ockr have also been received. Full launch rehearsal getting underway to ensure all systems configured

[L-30m] it is literally the crack of dawn (Eve shining above) right now as we move into final countdown procedures with a GO from the weather team - all surface weather constraints are showing <5% chance of violation over the coming hour. Be nice, @upperlevelwinds!

[L-15m] RSO has closed the range - pad is clear, waters are clear, airspace is clear. Rocket has been ARMED for ignition and Flight Termination System is ACTIVE. Final checks on the primed rocket underway that couldn't be performed prior to this point

[L-13m] a truck still hooked up to the service tower has begun to pump nitrogen into pressure vessels on the rocket, which will then be used to pressurize the main tanks during the flight. Late onload protects pad workers from any rupture and explosion

the lack of full tanks led to some issues during the WDR earlier this week getting them up to flight pressure in time for launch during the final seconds of countdown and is why the launch was delayed so we could improve the pumping system in the service tower

[L-5m] Final readiness polls complete: Wx: GO; Range: GO; Flight: GO; Tracking Station: GO; Downrange Tracking: GO; Ops Director: Launch permission granted! 🚀GO ASCENSION🚀 FTS on internal power, service tower booms unlocked to prep for retraction, AFCS ready for terminal count

[L-3m] tank pressurization has begun to ensure the rocket is able to stand on its own atop the engine collar once both the service tower arms have retracted. Helium may one day be used when we really need to save weight, but for now we need to save cost

[T-2m] rocket has entered the terminal countdown phase, where the flight computer takes control. Service tower arms have disconnected and swung away leaving the rocket running on internal power with RF comms signaling Mission Control to let us know all is still well

[T-1m] the flight computer will perform these final steps to ensure the rocket is ready for ascent when the engine clamp lets go at T-0. Any abort after T-30s final primary station poll will most likely be automated but controllers can call a hold all the way up to launch

main engine ignition, throttle up and LIFT OFF for the 3rd Ascension Mk1 Block I, aiming to pave the way for sub-orbital kerbed spaceflight! Rocket has cleared the tower & guidance has kicked in, throttling up to full and pitching over towards the horizon, aiming for 70° by 10km

rocket is through Max Q & throttling back to reduce heating in the upper atmosphere, chamber pressures are nominal. No rolling showing up in tlm data but pitch controls are at full deflection unable to maintain desired pitch over rate. We are heading up steeper than planned

MECO right on schedule although we were 8km lower than expected. Having coasted out of the atmosphere the payload has been decoupled and will use its RCS thrusters to push it away from the fuel tank. Controllers will then begin a series of control tests

beautiful confirmation of separation from the booster camera, which has a power/data cable hooked to the payload to give us this view for a few seconds before it gets pulled out. That is Eve just to the right and Jool up in the right corner

controllers are working an issue. RCS was supposed to stop thrusting after 10s but is still pushing forwards. Yes, we did try to turn it off and back on again. It looks like we may need to send up some new commands - careful! We don't want to crash the system...

thankfully the fix was simply to cut the throttle. Time in space is already counting down, approaching 255km apokee in <2min and there are lots of tests that need to be run before we hit the atmosphere ~5min after that. Hopefully we didn't use up too much propellant already

we're through apokee and on the way back down, control testing going well. Two control models are being put through pointing the rocket along the 6 main axis of orbit. Coarse control always uses full thruster power while a Fine control model adjusts the thruster output as needed

testing was completed in time and with enough propellant remaining to point retrograde for the heat shield to face the atmosphere. Payload has just come out of plasma blackout - it is falling well short of the intended landing zone but thankfully in a relatively flat area

full chute deploy confirmed! We did suffer a flight computer crash shortly after regaining comms but chutes have a backup air pressure sensor for deployment & payload still transmitting a signal if not data so we can see speed change thanks to doppler effect

an airship was on standby & is being dispatched to the landing area. Chutes were mounted on the bottom to flip the payload over to land nose first, allowing a faster descent using smaller chutes & still protect the heat shield from damage so it can be inspected post-flight

airship is en-route, radio beacon still being received so it landed intact and in sight of Ockr aerial. While we await word on the overall condition of the payload, post-launch operations continue, which also include removal of the engine collar to get set for next week's launch

great news - payload was found buried 1/4 of a meter up its nose into the dirt of a hillside - which means those nose thrusters are probably a write-off but at least it didn't roll down the slope and the rest is in great shape! Mission success! KERZZAH!! 🎉🥂✨

we should have the payload back by tomorrow, then it will likely be at least 2 weeks of post-flight analysis - the trajectory compared to LVD, how the heat shield handled re-entry, inspection of the RCS system, review of tlm data, review of software issues... lots of work!

telemetry data recorded during yesterday's flight is now available. For the first time we will be comparing this to data projected by the Launch Vehicle Designer tool to see how our planned launch matched up with the real one docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d…

here's the full video of the payload separation from yesterday. So smooth! A very small initial force was given to the payload at separation in case the RCS system failed & the 2 pieces would have eventually drifted far enough away by the time of re-entry youtube.com/watch?v=bqa7Wk…

the results are finally in from last month's Ascension Mk1 flight and there's still a lot of work to be done since much of the data was inconclusive in determining key aspects of the flight profile that we plan to send kerbals along kerbalspace.agency/?p=8614

this flight analysis was also conducted in part with the Progenitor team, who were working on the finishing touches to the Progeny Mk7 design when Ascension made some requests for technology they'd like to see prototyped. Stay tuned for details next week!