Northrop Grumman – Page 7 – Spaceflight Now

Ariane 5 to test modified fairing for JWST, hardware for new range safety system

July 31, 2020 Stephen Clark

Engineers plan to test small modifications to a payload shroud on a European Ariane 5 rocket launch Friday from French Guiana, gathering data on changes introduced to meet stringent criteria for the launch of the $10 billion James Webb Space Telescope in late 2021.

Photos: Minotaur rocket vaults into orbit from Virginia

July 17, 2020 Stephen Clark

Riding a half-million pounds of thrust, a Minotaur 4 rocket fired off a launch pad in Virginia, surpassed the speed of sound in less than 20 seconds, and vaulted into orbit Wednesday with four classified payloads for the National Reconnaissance Office.

NASA announces seven-month launch delay for JWST

July 16, 2020 Stephen Clark

NASA officials said Thursday the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope will be delayed seven months to Oct. 31, 2021, a schedule slip that takes into account work slowdowns caused by the coronavirus pandemic and the amount of testing required on the observatory before its shipment to French Guiana for liftoff on a European Ariane 5 rocket.

Minotaur rocket successfully deploys four NRO satellites in orbit

July 15, 2020 Stephen Clark

A solid-fueled Northrop Grumman Minotaur 4 rocket vaulted into orbit Wednesday from Virginia’s Eastern Shore and deployed four top secret spacecraft for the U.S. government’s spy satellite agency, extending the program’s success record ahead of three more Minotaur missions planned in 2021.

Photos: Minotaur 4 rocket ready for launch from Virginia

July 14, 2020 Stephen Clark

A 78-foot-tall Minotaur 4 rocket is poised for liftoff Wednesday from Virginia’s Eastern Shore carrying four top secret payloads into orbit for the National Reconnaissance Office.

Live coverage: Minotaur 4 rocket launches from Virginia

July 14, 2020 Stephen Clark

A solid-fueled Minotaur 4 rocket lifted off from Wallops Island, Virginia at 9:46 a.m. EDT (1346 GMT) Wednesday. The four-stage rocket, comprised of retired Peacekeeper missile parts, launched on a mission to deliver four classified payloads into orbit for the National Reconnaissance Office.

Minotaur rocket ready to launch four payloads for U.S. spy satellite agency

July 14, 2020 Stephen Clark

Four clandestine payloads for the National Reconnaissance Office are awaiting liftoff Wednesday from Wallops Island, Virginia, on a Minotaur 4 rocket powered by Cold War-era missile stages stored for more than 30 years until their conversion into a satellite launcher.

Three U.S.-built satellites in French Guiana for Ariane 5 launch

July 7, 2020 Stephen Clark

The next flight of Europe’s heavy-lift Ariane 5 rocket, set for July 28 from French Guiana, will carry a record payload of three multi-ton satellites toward geostationary orbit, including a pair of U.S.-built commercial communications payloads and Northrop Grumman’s second robotic satellite servicing spacecraft.

Top secret NRO payload installed on Minotaur rocket for launch from Virginia

July 4, 2020 Stephen Clark

Crews working on Virginia’s Eastern Shore this week raised a top secret payload for the National Reconnaissance Office — the U.S. government’s spy satellite agency — atop a solid-fueled Minotaur 4 rocket for liftoff July 15 on the first Minotaur launch in nearly three years.

SLS booster segments arrive in Florida, but stacking on hold until core stage test

June 22, 2020 Stephen Clark

Fueled segments of the solid rocket boosters that will lift off on the first flight of NASA’s Space Launch System have arrived at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, but officials will hold off on stacking the boosters until the SLS core stage completes a crucial test-firing later this year.