| T-00:00.0 |
Liftoff |
| The Delta 2 rocket's main engine and twin vernier steering thrusters are started moments before launch. The six ground-start strap-on solid rocket motors are ignited at T-0 to begin the mission. |
|
| T+01:03.1 |
Ground SRM 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 Alliant TechSystems-built solid rocket motors strapped to the Delta 2 rocket's first stage are ignited. |
|
| T+01:06 |
Jettison Ground SRMs |
| The six spent ground-started solid rocket boosters are jettisoned in sets of three at T+66 and T+67 seconds to fall into the Atlantic Ocean. |
|
| T+02:11.5 |
Jettison Air-Lit SRMs |
| Having burned out, the three spent air-started solid rocket boosters are jettisoned toward the Atlantic Ocean. |
|
| T+04:23.4 |
Main Engine Cutoff |
| After consuming its RP-1 fuel and liquid oxygen, the 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 Atlantic 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 boost the upper stage and Mars Odyssey into the proper orbit. |
|
| T+04:42.0 |
Jettison Payload Fairing |
| The 9.5-foot diameter composite payload fairing that protected the Mars Odyssey satellite atop the Delta 2 during the atmospheric ascent is jettisoned is two halves. |
|
| T+09:54.2 |
Second Stage Cutoff 1 |
| The second stage engine shuts down to complete its first firing of the launch. The rocket and attached Mars Odyssey spacecraft are now in an 11-minute coast period before the second stage reignites. The orbit achieved should be 100 by 107 nautical miles, inclined 49.2 deg. |
|
| T+21:04.4 |
Second Stage Restart |
| Delta's second stage engine reignites for a short firing to raise one side of the orbit. |
|
| T+21:56.0 |
Second Stage Cutoff 2 |
| The second stage shuts down after a 52-second burst. Over the next minute, tiny thrusters on the side of the rocket will be fired to spin up the vehicle in preparation for stage separation. |
|
| T+22:49.0 |
Stage Separation |
| The liquid-fueled second stage is jettisoned from the rest of the Delta 2 rocket having completed its role in the launch. |
|
| T+23:26.0 |
Third Stage Ignition |
| The Thiokol Star 48B solid-fueled third stage is then ignited to propel Mars Odyssey away from Earth. A nutation control system featuring a thruster on an arm mounted on the side of the stage will be used to maintain stability during the burn. |
|
| T+24:53.7 |
Third Stage Burnout |
| Having used up all its solid-propellant, the third stage burns out to completed the powered phase of the launch sequence. In about four-and-a-half minutes, two small yo-yo-like structures are released from the third stage to reduce the spinning motion the Delta rocket and Mars Odyssey are experiencing in preparation for satellite separation. |
|
| T+29:41.0 |
Spacecraft Separation |
| NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft is deployed from the Delta 2 rocket to begin its six-month interplanetary cruise to the Red Planet. |
