T-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+00:01.1 |
Liftoff |
The three strap-on solid rocket boosters are lit as the Atlas 5 vehicle, designated AV-041, lifts off and begins a vertical rise away from Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. |
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T+00:05.4 |
Begin Pitch/Roll/Yaw Maneuver |
The 196-foot-tall Atlas 5 begins to maneuver itself on the proper trajectory east of Complex 41 on an azimuth of 90.13 degrees. |
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T+00:38.2 |
Mach 1 |
Burning its RD-180 main engine and three solid rocket boosters, the Atlas 5 rocket passes the speed of sound. |
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T+00:46.7 |
Max-Q |
The Atlas 5 rocket passes the region of flight known as maximum dynamic pressure, or Max-Q. |
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T+01:56 |
Jettison SRBs |
Having burned out of propellant approximately 25 seconds earlier, the spent solid rocket boosters are jettisoned to fall into the Atlantic Ocean. |
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T+03:29 |
Nose Cone Jettison |
The payload fairing that protected the AEHF 3 spacecraft during launch is separated once heating levels drop to predetermined limits. |
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T+03:34 |
Forward Load Reactor Jettison |
The Forward Load Reactor deck that supported the payload fairing's structure to Centaur upper stage is released seconds after the shroud's jettison. |
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T+04:17 |
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+04:23 |
Stage 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+04:33 |
Centaur Ignition 1 |
The Centaur RL10 engine ignites for the longer of the two upper stage firings. This burn will inject the Centaur stage and AEHF 3 spacecraft into a parking orbit. |
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T+14:00 |
Centaur Cutoff 1 |
The Centaur engine shuts down after arriving in a planned parking orbit. The vehicle enters a brief coast period lasting nearly 8 minutes before arriving at the required location in space for the second burn. |
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T+21:57 |
Centaur Ignition 2 |
The Centaur re-ignites over the equatorial Atlantic to accelerate the payload into supersynchronous transfer orbit from the parking achieved earlier in the launch sequence. |
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T+27:35 |
Centaur Cutoff 2 |
At the conclusion of its second firing, the Centaur will have delivered the AEHF 3 spacecraft into the targeted orbit with an apogee of 31,069 statute miles, perigee of 140 statute miles and inclination of 20.9 degrees. |
T+50:58 |
Spacecraft Separation |
The U.S. military's fourth Advanced Extremely High Frequency communications satellite is released into orbit from the Centaur upper stage to complete the AV-041 launch. |