WEBVTT

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The MRO launch will usher in a first for NASA. The spacecraft will be carried aloft by a Lockheed Martin Atlas V rocket.

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Mission integration manager Tammy Harrington explains why the Atlas is the rocket for the job.

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As mission integration manager for the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter mission, my primary responsibility is to be the interface between

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the spacecraft and the launch vehicle. I manage the process by which the spacecraft and the launch vehicle actually come together.

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This is accomplished by managing a team of over two dozen engineers and analysts from the NASA Launch Services program. In order to accomplish this,

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we actually have to determine what accommodations need to be done on the launch vehicle in order to accommodate the spacecraft,

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and how the basic spacecraft design must be done in order to fly successfully on the launch vehicle.

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The Atlas V launch vehicle that was chosen to fly the MRO mission is known as an Atlas V 401. This is a basic

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Atlas V configuration using a four-meter fairing, no solid rocket motors and one Centaur engine.

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Since this is the first time that NASA or the government will fly an Atlas V launch vehicle, the NASA Launch Services program engineering team had

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to go through a significant technical evaluation in order to verify the flight worthiness of this launch vehicle.

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This process will certify the basic design, qualification and flight history of the

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Atlas V for future use by the NASA Launch Services program and its spacecraft customers.

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The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Atlas V rocket is a two-stage rocket that will propel the spacecraft on its mission to Mars.

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The launch vehicle will actually send MRO on a hyperbolic trajectory in order to get on its path to Mars.

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There is two stages on this rocket. The first is known as the common core booster.

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This is propelled by a Russian-built RD-180 engine, and it is fueled by liquid oxygen and RP-1 propellant.

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The common-core booster on the MRO mission will actually burn for a little over four minutes prior to being released from the launch vehicle.

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In addition, the second stage of this launch vehicle is known as the Centaur upper stage.

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This is powered by an RL-10 engine and is fueled by liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen.

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For the MRO mission, the Centaur upper stage will actually perform two burns.

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The first burn lasts approximately 9-1/2 minutes and will place the spacecraft into a parking orbit. This parking orbit is a time where the

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spacecraft actually coasts around in its orbit in order to get to the right position for the next burn, and that coast will last approximately 30 minutes.

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The Centaur will then perform a second burn which will last about 6-1/2 minutes and will accelerate the

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spacecraft out of Earth's orbit and propel it on its way to Mars.

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The mission integration manager's role on launch day is an assessment of the spacecraft readiness, as well as the launch service readiness.

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I will interface with the spacecraft mission director pertaining to issues associated with the spacecraft readiness,

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network operations readiness, as well as any anomalies that they may be working on the spacecraft side.

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I will also interface back with the spacecraft mission director on the progress of the actual launch countdown.

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The culmination of my activities will come in when I provide my final go/no-go for launch to the NASA launch manager.

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Thanks for the insight, Tammy.

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