| T-00:00 |
Liftoff |
| The Delta 2 rocket's main engine and twin vernier steering thrusters are started moments before launch. Six of the nine strap-on solid rocket motors are ignited at T-0 to begin the mission. |
|
| T+01:04.0 |
Ground SRB Burnout |
| The six ground-start Alliant TechSystems-built solid rocket motors consume all their propellant and burn out. |
|
| T+01:05.5 |
Air-Lit SRM Ignition |
| The three remaining solid rocket motors strapped to the Delta 2 rocket's first stage are ignited. |
|
| T+01:26.0 |
Jettison SRBs |
| The spent solid rocket boosters are jettisoned to fall into the Pacific Ocean. The spent casings remained attached until the vehicle passed into preset drop zone, clear of offshore oil platforms. |
|
| T+02:11.5 |
Jettison Air-Lit SRMs |
| Having burned out, the three spent air-started solid rocket boosters are jettisoned toward the Pacific Ocean. |
|
| T+04:23.4 |
Main Engine Cutoff |
| After consuming its RP-1 fuel and liquid oxygen, the Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne RS-27A first stage main engine is shut down. The vernier engines cut off moments later. |
|
| T+04:31.4 |
Stage Separation |
| The Delta rocket's first stage is separated now, having completed its job. The spent stage will fall into the Pacific Ocean. |
|
| T+04:36.9 |
Second Stage Ignition |
| With the stage jettisoned, the rocket's second stage takes over. The Aerojet AJ118-K liquid-fueled engine ignites for the first of two firings needed to place the NPP spacecraft into the proper orbit. |
|
| T+04:41.0 |
Jettison Payload Fairing |
| The 10-foot diameter payload fairing that protected the NPP cargo atop the Delta 2 during the atmospheric ascent is jettisoned is two halves. |
|
| T+10:23.7 |
Second Stage Cutoff 1 |
| The second stage engine shuts down to complete its first firing of the launch. The rocket and attached spacecraft are now in a long coast period before the second stage reignites. The orbit achieved should be 460 nautical miles at apogee, 100 miles at perigee and inclined 98.655 degrees. |
|
| T+52:05.0 |
Second Stage Restart |
| Delta's second stage engine reignites for a short firing to boost the elliptical orbit into a more circular one. |
|
| T+52:26.7 |
Second Stage Cutoff 2 |
| The second stage shuts down after a 22-second burn. The orbit achieved should be 445.7 nautical miles at apogee, 438.8 miles at perigee and inclined 98.705 degrees. |
|
| T+58:45.0 |
NPP Separation |
| The NPOESS Preparatory Project spacecraft for NOAA and NASA is released from the Delta 2 rocket, completing the primary launch sequence. |
|
| T+92:30.0 |
Second Stage Restart |
| Delta's second stage engine reignites for 39 seconds to perform its planned evasive maneuver to leave the orbital plane of the NPP satellite, resulting in a new orbit of 437.6 nautical miles at apogee, 183.6 nautical miles at perigee and inclined 101.8 degrees. |
|
| T+98:20.0 |
CubeSat Deploys |
| A half-dozen student-made CubeSats are ejected from carriers on the Delta second stage in three deployment events occurring in 100-second intervals. AubieSat 1, DICE, Explorer 1 (Prime) Unit 2, M-Cubed and RAX 2 are part of NASA's Educational Launch of Nanosatellite, or ELaNa. |
|
| T+114:58.6 |
Second Stage Restart |
| Delta's second stage engine reignites for 32 seconds to deplete its remaining fuel supply, resulting in a new orbit of 399.0 nautical miles at apogee, 100.1 nautical miles at perigee and inclined 107.5 degrees. |
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