
Mission Briefing

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Mission preview - Our story providing an overview of this rocket launch.

Launch timeline - Chart with times and descriptions of events to occur during the launch.

The rocket - Technical story of the new Atlas 5 rocket family.

AMC 16 - Information about this Lockheed Martin-built satellite.

Weather forecast - The latest forecast for launch day conditions.

Launch hazard area - The restricted area during liftoff.

Complex 41 - A tour of the Atlas 5 launch site and description of the "clean pad" concept.

Ground track - See the trajectory the rocket will follow during its flight.

Orbit insertion - Illustration of AMC 16's trek to geostationary orbit.

Atlas directory - See our coverage of previous Atlas rocket flights.



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AV-005 launch timeline
SPACEFLIGHT NOW Posted: December 14, 2004
| T-0:00:02.7 |
Engine Start |
| The Russian-designed RD-180 main engine is ignited and undergoes checkout prior to launch. |
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| T+0:00:01.1 |
Liftoff |
| The two strap-on solid rocket boosters are lit as the Atlas 5 vehicle, designated AV-005, lifts off and begins a vertical rise away from Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. |
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| T+0:02:04.0 |
Jettison SRBs |
| Having burned out of propellant a half-minute earlier, the two spent solid rocket boosters are jettisoned to fall into the Atlantic Ocean. |
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| T+0:03:42.5 |
Nose Cone Jettison |
| The payload fairing that protected the AMERICOM 16 spacecraft during launch is separated once heating levels drop to predetermined limits. The Forward Load Reactor deck that supported the fairing's structure to Centaur is released five seconds later. |
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| T+0:04:27.2 |
Main Engine Cutoff |
| The RD-180 main engine completes its firing after consuming its kerosene and liquid oxygen fuel supply in the Atlas first stage. |
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| T+0:04:33.2 |
Atlas/Centaur Separation |
| The Common Core Booster first stage of the Atlas 5 rocket separates from the Centaur upper stage. Over the next few seconds, the Centaur engine liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen systems are readied for ignition. |
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| T+0:04:43.2 |
Centaur Ignition 1 |
| MES 1, the longer of the two Centaur firings begins to inject the upper stage and AMC 16 spacecraft into a low-altitude parking orbit. |
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| T+0:15:46.7 |
Centaur Cutoff 1 |
| MECO 1 occurs the Centaur engines are shutdown, arriving in a planned parking orbit with an apogee of 2,882 nautical miles, perigee of 90 miles and inclination of 27.20 degrees. The vehicle enters a lengthy coast period before arriving at the required location in space for the second burn. |
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| T+1:41:57.6 |
Centaur Ignition 2 |
| MES 2 occurs to accelerate the payload into geosynchronous transfer orbit from the parking achieved earlier in the launch sequence. |
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| T+1:45:53.1 |
Centaur Cutoff 2 |
| At MECO 2, the Centaur completes the powered flight to deliver the AMC 16 spacecraft into the targeted deployment orbit with an apogee of 19,323 nautical miles, perigee of 2,591 miles and inclination of 18.02 degrees. |
| T+1:48:42.2 |
Spacecraft Separation |
| The AMERICOM 16 commercial communications satellite is released into orbit from the Centaur upper stage to complete the AV-005 launch. The satellite will be operated by SES AMERICOM to provide video and broadband services to EchoStar's DISH Network direct-to-home TV system. |

Data source: International Launch Services and Lockheed Martin.
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