A one-of-a-kind rocket-assembly and mission-control ship that weds space and sea steamed into the Sea Launch Home Port on Monday, carrying the rocket to be used for the first-ever launch of a commercial satellite from the ocean.
The Sea Launch Commander arrived after a month-long journey from
St. Petersburg, Russia, where it was fitted with more than 600 tons of
electronic and mechanical support equipment and took on the first two
Sea Launch rockets — modified versions of the proven Ukrainian-built
Zenit.
The vessel, known as the Assembly and Command Ship (ACS), serves
as a floating mission-control center and rocket-assembly plant — the
first ever in the world.
"Today marks an important milestone in the Sea Launch mission to
provide affordable, reliable and convenient satellite-launch
services," said Allen B. Ashby, Sea Launch president and general
manager. "The Sea Launch Commander is a one-of-a-kind ship, and we're
exceptionally pleased that it has arrived at our operations base in
Long Beach."
The Sea Launch Commander was designed specifically for Sea Launch
by the Anglo-Norwegian corporation Kvaerner, a partner in the
international Sea Launch venture.
At first glance, it looks like a cruise ship, painted white with
bright blue and gold stripes across its sides. It has accommodations
and entertainment — including a swimming pool and a cinema — for up
to 240 people, including crew, launch technicians and customers.
A closer look below deck reveals a roll-on, roll-off cargo-
vessel design arranged for assembly and transportation of launch
vehicles, as well as integration of their satellite payloads. The
above-deck control room is filled with sophisticated communications
and rocket-control equipment.
A separate customer control room allows Sea Launch users to
communicate with and test their satellite payloads both before and
after launch.
The Sea Launch Commander is 667 feet long. The ship was built at
the Kvaerner Govan Shipyard in Glasgow, Scotland, and christened there
in September 1997.
A second, unique Sea Launch vessel, the Odyssey, is en route from
Russia and due in Long Beach in late August. The Odyssey, a self-
propelled, semi-submersible launch platform (LP), was converted from a
North Sea oil-drilling rig by Kvaerner at its shipyard in Stavanger,
Norway.
The Home Port, on former Navy property at the Port of Long Beach,
features a payload-processing facility that includes two state-of-the-
art spacecraft-preparation areas and an encapsulation facility.
Located conveniently close to satellite manufacturers in
California, it also includes a warehouse that can house up to three
Zenit launch vehicles, a 1,000-foot wharf for berthing of the two
vessels, and offices for Sea Launch customers.
The first launch is scheduled for late 1998 near Christmas
Island, about 1,400 miles southeast of Hawaii and near the equator.
From that location, the launch vehicle follows the shortest possible
route to orbit, thereby increasing equivalent capability. The site
also has routinely calm waters.
Before departing for the launch site, the satellite will be mated
with the launch vehicle aboard the Sea Launch Commander and
transferred to the Odyssey. Once the two vessels are at the launch
site, the Odyssey crew will leave that vessel and board the command
ship.
After the Odyssey is stabilized by partial submersion, the space
vehicle will be erected, fueled and launched via remote control from
the Sea Launch Commander, about three miles away.
The first launch will boost a next-generation Hughes Model HS 702
communications satellite — dubbed Galaxy XI — into geostationary
transfer orbit. To date, Sea Launch has contracts for 17 other
launches.
