Fwd: Japanese cargo ship launched to ISS

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From: "Gary Johnson" <gjohnson144@comcast.net>
Date: August 4, 2013 2:30:05 PM GMT-06:00
To: "Gary Johnson" <gjohnson144@comcast.net>
Subject: FW: Japanese cargo ship launched to ISS

 

Launch Result of H-II Transfer Vehicle "KOUNOTORI4" (HTV4) by H-IIB Launch Vehicle No. 4

August 4, 2013 (JST)

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency launched the H-IIB Launch Vehicle No.4 (H-IIB F4) with the KOUNOTORI4 (HTV4, a cargo transfer vehicle to the International Space Station) onboard at 4:48:46 a.m. on August 4 (Sun.) 2013 (Japan Standard Time, JST) from the Tanegashima Space Center.

The launch vehicle flew smoothly, and, at about 14 minutes and 59 seconds after liftoff, the separation of the KOUNOTORI4 was confirmed.

We would like to express our profound appreciation for the cooperation and support of all related personnel and organizations that helped contribute to the successful launch of the H-IIB F4.

At the time of the launch, the weather was fine, a wind speed was 3.5 meters/second from the northwest and the temperature was 27.9 degrees Celsius.

H-IIB Launch Vehicle No.4 (H-IIB F4)
Launch Sequence (Quick Review)

 

Event	Actual value (Quick review)*1	Scheduled value*2 (Predicted value based on actual measurement data)
1. Liftoff	0 second	0 second
2. Solid rocket booster (SRB-A) burnout *3	1 min. 50 sec.	1 min. 54 sec.
3. Solid rocket booster (SRB-A) 1st pair jettison *4	2 min. 6 sec.	2 min. 4 sec.
4. Solid rocket booster (SRB-A) 2nd pair jettison *4	2 min. 9 sec.	2 min. 7 sec.
5. Payload fairing jettison	3 min. 40 sec.	3 min. 40 sec.
6. Main engine cutoff (MECO)	5 min. 46 sec.	5 min. 45 sec.
7. 1st and 2nd stages separation	5 min. 54 sec.	5 min. 54 sec.
8. Second stage engine lock in (SELI)	6 min. 4 sec.	6 min. 4 sec.
9. Second stage engine cutoff (SECO)	14 min. 8 sec.	14 min. 7 sec.
10. HTV-4 separation *5	14 min. 59 sec.	14 min. 57 sec.

(*1) The values are based on quick report results without detailed data evaluation.
(*2) The values are updated ones based on actual measurement data such as thrust characteristics which are unique for the H-IIB F4 engines. Therefore, they are slightly different from the values in the Launch Plan.
(*3) When the combustion chamber presser becomes 10% against the largest combustion pressure.
(*4) The definition of SRB-A jettison is to cut the thrust struts.
(*5) When the launch vehicle sent the separation signal  

 

 Copyright (C) 2007-2012 Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency  

 

Japanese cargo ship launched on station resupply flight

08/03/2013 04:10 PM 

By WILLIAM HARWOOD
CBS News

An unmanned Japanese cargo ship loaded with nearly 4 tons of science gear, spare parts and supplies rocketed away from the Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan Saturday, kicking off a six-day flight to the International Space Station.

With its twin hydrogen-fueled first stage engines roaring at full throttle, four strap-on solid-fuel boosters ignited with a burst of flame at 3:48:46 p.m. EDT (4:48 a.m. Sunday local time), instantly pushing the 186-foot-tall rocket away from its seaside launching stand.

A Japanese H-2B rocket blasted off from the Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan early Sunday (Japan time), boosting the HTV-4 cargo craft into space for a flight to the International Space Station. (Photo: NASA TV)

Lighting up the pre-dawn sky, the rocket briefly climbed straight up trailing a brilliant jet of flame from its strap-on boosters before arcing away on a southeasterly trajectory, visible for miles around as it rapidly accelerated through a clear sky.

The space station's crew watched the launch via television beamed up from mission control in Houston.

The ascent went smoothly and the strap-on boosters burned out and fell away in pairs about two minutes after liftoff. The H-2B's first stage shut down and fell away about four minutes later and the rocket's second stage continued the push to orbit for another nine minutes.

"The flight goes very smoothly," a Japanese commentator said as the rocket neared orbit.

There were no obvious problems and about 15 minutes after liftoff from launch pad No. 2, the HTV-4 cargo ship was released into its planned preliminary orbit with a high point, or apogee, of around 186 miles and a low point, or perigee, of about 124 miles.

If all goes well, the spacecraft will carry out a carefully orchestrated sequence of rocket firings over the next several days to set up a rendezvous with the International Space Station early Friday, closing to within about 90 feet around 6:33 a.m.

At that point, with Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano monitoring the HTV's systems, the cargo ship will go into stationkeeping mode and astronaut Karen Nyberg, operating the space station's robot arm, will lock onto a grapple fixture around 7:29 a.m.

Assisted by Christopher Cassidy, Nyberg plans to move the HTV-4 spacecraft to the Earth-facing port of the station's forward Harmony module where it will be locked into place with a common berthing mechanism. Hatches will be opened the next day.

Developed by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, as a contribution to the space station program, the HTV is 32 feet long and 14.4 feet wide. It is designed to carry both pressurized and unpressurized cargo, including equipment too big to pass through the space station's hatches.

(Photo: NASA TV)

For its fourth flight to the International Space Station, the pressurized section of the HTV is carrying an experiment sample freezer, spacesuit oxygen tanks, batteries, a spare emergency jet backpack, food for the station crew, clothing and fresh water.

The pressurized section also houses a re-entry data recorder, an ultra high-resolution camera that will be used to image Comet ISON and four small Cubesat satellites that will be deployed from the Japanese Kibo laboratory's airlock.

The HTV's unpressurized section is carrying a 516-pound main bus switching unit, part of the station's electrical power distribution system, a spare 644-pound solar array power and data interface unit and a 721-pound NASA experiment pallet housing eight experiments in a variety of disciplines.

The unpressurized components will be removed by the station's robot arm and mounted in an external logistics pallet. Cargo and supplies in the pressurized section will be unloaded by the station crew.

The astronauts then will repack the craft with trash and other no-longer needed gear. If all goes well, the HTV-4 spacecraft will be detached from the station Sept. 4, burning up in the atmosphere the next day.

Here is a timeline of critical mission events (times approximate; in EDT and mission elapsed time):

DATE/EDT......DD...HH...MM...SS...EVENT

08/03/13
03:48:46 PM...00...00...00...00...HTV4 Launch
04:03:39 PM...00...00...14...53...HTV4 Separation
11:19:18 PM...00...07...30...32...PM1 rendezvous rocket firing (28.99 m/s)
.
.
.
08/08/13

11:57:49 PM...05...08...09...03...Start of integrated ops

08/09/13
05:08:32 AM...05...13...19...46...Range: 500 m
05:21:51 AM...05...13...33...05...Sunrise
05:29:03 AM...05...13...40...17...Arrive at 250-meter hold point

05:44:03 AM...05...13...55...17...Yaw around start
05:54:03 AM...05...14...05...17...Yaw around complete
05:54:03 AM...05...14...05...17...Go
06:04:03 AM...05...14...15...17...Depart 250-meter hold point
06:30:17 AM...05...14...41...31...Sunset

06:33:30 AM...05...14...44...44...Arrive at 30-meter hold point
06:43:30 AM...05...14...54...44...Go
06:53:30 AM...05...15...04...44...Depart 30-meter hold point
06:54:54 AM...05...15...06...08...Sunrise
07:09:54 AM...05...15...21...08...Capture lighting window open

07:14:10 AM...05...15...25...24...Arrival at capture point (CP)
07:19:38 AM...05...15...30...52...Go
07:29:38 AM...05...15...40...52...CAPTURE
08:03:09 AM...05...16...14...23...Sunset
08:12:57 AM...05...16...24...11...Capture lighting window close

08:27:57 AM...05...16...39...11...Sunrise
08:42:57 AM...05...16...54...11...Backup lighting window open
09:36:01 AM...05...17...47...15...Sunset
09:46:00 AM...05...17...57...14...Backup lighting window close
10:01:00 AM...05...18...12...14...Sunrise

© 2011 William Harwood/CBS News

 

 

Japan Launches Talking 'Robot Astronaut' Kirobo Into Space

by Tariq Malik, Managing Editor   |   August 03, 2013 03:38pm ET

A Japanese H-2B rocket launches the HTV-4 (Kounotori 4) robotic cargo ship toward the International Space Station on Aug. 4, 2013 Japan Standard Time (Aug. 3, 2013 EDT/GMT) from Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan. Credit: NASA TV/JAXA View full size image

Call it one giant leap for robot kind: A small talking robot launched into space aboard a Japanese cargo ship Saturday (Aug. 3) to keep astronauts company on the International Space Station.

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) launched the humanoid Kirobo "robot astronaut" into orbit from the Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan as part of nearly 3.5 tons of supplies and equipment to resupply the space station's six-person crew.

Kirobo was packed inside Japan's unmanned  HTV-4 (Kounotori 4) cargo ship when it launched into orbit atop the country's H-2B rocket  at 3:48 p.m. EDT (1948 GMT), though it was early Sunday morning (Aug. 4) Japan Standard Time at the time of liftoff. The HTV-4 spacecraft will arrive at the space station on Aug. 9. [See photos of Japan's nighttime HTV-4 space launch]

"The flight goes very smoothly," a JAXA launch controller said as the HTV-4 spacecraft entered orbit.

Kirobo was put through a series of zero-gravity and other safety tests before it was deemed ready for flight. Image posted June 27, 2013.
Credit: Kibo Robot Project

View full size image

Meet Kirobo, the talking robot

The Kirobo space robot is a diminutive mechanical person just 13 inches (34 centimeters) tall built to converse with astronauts on long space voyages. The robot, and its ground-based counterpart Mirata, are part of the Kibo Robot Project to study human-robot interaction technology. Kirobo speaks Japanese and is expected to talk to JAXA astronaut Koichi Wakata when he arrives at the space station in November.

 Kibo, which means "hope" in Japanese, is the name of Japan's research laboratory module aboard the International Space Station. The name of Kirobo is a merging of Kibo and robot, project officials have said.

Kirobo only stands about 13.4 inches (34 centimeters) tall. Image posted June 27, 2013.
Credit: Kibo Robot Project

View full size image

Kirobo and Mirata were built by scientists and engineers at the by the University of Tokyo's Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology. Both robots come equipped with voice-recognition and face-recognition technology, as well as a camera, emotion recognition and natural language processing. The Toyota Motor Corp., Robo Garage and the public relations company Dentsu Inc. are partners in Kibo Robot Project.

"I want to help create a world where humans and robots can live together," Kirobo said when asked what its dream is by an official from Toyota Motor Corp., during the Kibo Robot Project's press unveiling in late June.

You can follow Kirobo's mission online via Twitter using the name @Kibo_robo.

Japan's space delivery

Kirobo is just one piece of cargo among the thousands of pounds riding to the space station aboard Japan's HTV-4 spacecraft. Included among the 3.5 tons of cargo aboard are about 1,880 pounds (852 kilograms) or spare part and new experiment supplies to be attached to the station's exterior. [Japan's HTV Cargo Ships Explained (Infographic)]

"Among the items within Kounotori's pressurized logistics carrier are test samples for research experiments inside the Kibo laboratory, a new freezer capable of preserving materials at temperatures below -90 F, four small CubeSat satellites to be deployed from Kibo's airlock as well as food, water and other supplies for the station's crew," NASA officials said in an update. "The pressurized section also is delivering new hardware for the Robotic Refueling Mission to demonstrate robotic satellite-servicing tools, technologies and techniques."

The H-2 Transfer Vehicle-4 separates from the H-2B launch vehicle second stage after launching on Aug. 3, 2013 EDT.
Credit: NASA TV/JAXA

View full size image

This is the fourth mission for JAXA's HTV program (the name is short for H-2 Transfer Vehicle) since 2009. The cylindrical disposable spacecraft are built to haul up to 6 tons of cargo to the International Space Station and then be discarded at the mission's end.

HTV craft are called Kounotori (Japanese for "White Stork") and are about 33 feet long by 14.4 feet wide (10 by 4.4 meters). They carry supplies and equipment inside a pressurized section, which astronauts can access after the vehicle links up with the station. They also have an unpressurized section that can be accessed via the station's robotic to retrieve spare parts and other larger gear that can be stored on the orbiting lab's exterior.

All JAXA HTV spacecraft are designed to be captured using by astronauts using the space station's robotic arm. After the HTV craft is grappled, it is then attached to an open berthing spot on the orbiting lab. NASA astronauts Karen Nyberg and Chris Cassidy will control the station's robotic arm in order to capture HTV-4 on Aug. 9.

A Japanese H-2B rocket streaks toward orbit carrying the HTV-4 (Kounotori 4) robotic cargo ship to the International Space Station on Aug. 4, 2013 Japan Standard Time (Aug. 3, 2013 EDT/GMT) from Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan.
Credit: NASA TV/JAXA

View full size image

Space station's robot fleet

Japan's HTV spacecraft are just one of several robotic spacecraft that make regular shipments to the International Space Station. Russia's unmanned Progress spacecraft and the Automated Transfer Vehicles built by the European Space Agency also make periodic deliveries.

Two private U.S. spaceflight companies also have billion-dollar contracts with NASA to provide robotic cargo deliver missions to the space station.

The Hawthorne, Calif.-based SpaceX has already launched two of 12 planned delivery flights for NASA using its Dragon space capsules as part of a $1.6 billion deal with the U.S. space agency. Unlike all other robotic cargo ships serving the station, SpaceX's Dragon capsules can also return hardware and experiments to Earth.

NASA also has a $1.9 billion deal with the Dulles, Va.-based Orbital Sciences Corp. for at least eight delivery flights using the company's new Antares rocket and Cygnus spacecraft. The Antares rocket flew its first test flight in April and is slated to launch the maiden Cygnus delivery mission to the space station in mid-September.

The International Space Station is currently home to six astronauts representing three different countries and space agencies. Its Expedition 36 crew consists of three Russian cosmonauts, two American astronauts and an Italian astronaut representing the European Space Agency.

NASA officials said the space station crew watched the HTV-4 launch via a live video link while soaring 260 miles (418 kilometers) over southwest Russia. The Japanese cargo ship will be captured via robotic arm on Friday, Aug. 9, at 7:29 a.m. EDT (1129 GMT) and be attached to the space station at about 9:30 a.m. EDT (1330 GMT).

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