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Small Satellite Opportunities at
Wallops Flight Facility
Dr. John Campbell
Director, Wallops Flight Facility
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The Small Satellite Paradox
Small satellites are not funded (nor built) because of a lack of affordable launch opportunities
and
Affordable small satellite launch capabilities have been slow to emerge due to a limited market
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Small Satellite Launch Enablers
1. Low-cost small launch vehicles
2. Inexpensive & responsive launch ranges
3. Ride sharing
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Low-Cost Launch Vehicles
• Get-Away Special & Hitchhiker once served as the premier means for orbiting small satellites
• New small ELVs are moving to fill the void– Minotaur I, IV, & V
– SpaceX Falcon 1
– Etc.
• Essential characteristics of new vehicles– Simple pad infrastructure
– Short time from arrival at range to launch
– Much lower cost per pound than current vehicles
– Streamlined range support requirements (e.g., data services, personnel accommodations)
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Small Launch Vehicle OptionsConducted from Wallops
Launch Vehicle LEO Mass kg (est.)
Trans-Lunar Injection Mass
kg (est.) Price ROM
Existing Options Pegasus 420 N/A ~$30M
Taurus 3110/3113 1530 350 ~$40M Minotaur 1 580 N/A ~$20M
Near-Term Options Minotaur 4/5 1680 490 ~$30M
Falcon 1 620 100 ~$10M Falcon 9 ~9000 ~2000 ~$30M
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Small Satellites to the Moon
• Small ELVs (e.g., Minotaur V) launched from Wallops can transport 350-500 kg (payload is ~50%) to the Moon
• Can provide low-cost options for Science and Exploration needs– Remote sensing orbiters– Impacters– Small landers– Communication & navigation orbiters
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Small Satellite Launch Enablers
1. Low-cost small launch vehicles
2. Inexpensive & responsive launch ranges
3. Ride sharing
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Launch Site on Wallops Island
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• MARS owns 2 launch complexes at Wallops
• Used for Wallops small-to-medium class ELV missions
• MARS is a VA & MD sponsored partnership with NASA chartered to pursue commercial aerospace opportunities at Wallops
• Current agreements enable efficient work with Wallops, using multiple business models:• NASA support of MARS commercial launches• MARS support of NASA’s government launches
Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS)
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Wallops Operating Areas
• Wallops operational areas offer nearly unlimited mission capabilities– Restricted NASA-controlled airspace
encompasses Launch Range & Research Airport
– NASA airspace provides direct access to Atlantic Ocean for hazardous mission operations
• Wallops location & geography provides the most efficient access to desirable mid-inclination orbits of 38-60 degrees
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Low-Cost Responsive Range Operations
• Wallops Launch Range is “right-sized” for small spacecraft missions– Small spacecraft missions not competing
against large ELVs or Shuttle– Staff & facilities sized for small orbital
missions
• Wallops has a history & reputation for supporting emerging, low-cost launch vehicles– Schedule flexibility allows for
development mission complications– Safety & project support culture of
assisting projects during development
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Launch Site Integration Flow
Lower Stages
Arrival ~L-30 days
SpacecraftPlus
Upper Stage
Arrival ~L-30 days
Pad
~L-14 days
Launch!
Blockhouse 3
Range Control Center
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Minotaur I Launch @ Wallops
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Small Satellite Launch Enablers
1. Low-cost small launch vehicles
2. Inexpensive & responsive launch ranges
3. Ride sharing
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Ridesharing
• Small ELVs are still larger than necessary for many small satellites
• Multi-manifesting of small ELVs is critical to ensuring that “Micro-Explorer” spacecraft (50-200 lbs.) mature as a viable class of spacecraft
• Wallops has developed the Multi-Payload Ejector as a key enabler to exploit small ELVs for spacecraft smaller than 1000 lbs.
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Multi-Payload Ejector• MPE able to carry >800 lbs. of individual spacecraft
– 1 primary (up to 200 lbs.)– 6 secondaries (up to 100 lbs. each) – 12 CubeSat tertiaries (up to 3 lbs. each)
• Flexible– Configurable for any launch vehicle, as primary for smaller
ELV & secondary for larger ELVs– Can be flown as 1, 2, or 3 segments allowing trade-offs on
individual spacecraft masses/volume & orbital altitude
• Low-cost & simple– Completes payload deployments within ½ orbit– Motorized spring deployments (no pyrotechnics)– Sounding rocket qualified timers– Single input from launch vehicle initiates all MPE events– Launch vehicle provides only necessary guidance/control
• Rapid Integration
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MPE Integration Flow
T-4weeks
T-3weeks
T-2weeks
T-1week
LaunchDay
.
.
Spacecraft I&T MPE Integration Vehicle Integration & Test
Spacecraft (S/C) Development
& Test
S/C Arrival @ Wallops
S/C Receiving & Inspection
S/C Integration with MPE
MPE Integration with ELV
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MPE Simulation
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Small Satellite Launch Costs by the PoundNot by the vehicle
• Component Costs, w/o Spacecraft (Wallops Launch):– MPE (NASA): $1.5M– I&T (NASA): $300K– Range Services (NASA): $1.5M– Launch Vehicle $16M (assumes Minotaur I)TOTAL: $19.3M
• Payload Capacity (MPE 3-stack configuration)– MPE Structure: ~300 lbs.– 1 primary spacecraft: 200 lbs.– 6 secondary spacecraft (100 lbs. each): 600 lbs.– 12 Cubesats (3 lbs. each) 36 lbs.Total Spacecraft mass for 19 spacecraft 836 lbs
• Cost per payload mass– Minotaur I: $23K/payload lb.– Falcon I: $13.5K/payload lb.
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Small Satellite Launch Enablers
1. Low-cost small launch vehicles
2. Inexpensive & responsive launch ranges
3. Ride sharing