Well before its Sunday night trek to orbit from Vandenberg Space Force Base , a joint U.S.-European satellite to monitor the world’s oceans had already logged some significant travel miles.
The Sentinel-6B satellite, packed inside the Falcon 9 rocket’s payload fairing, blasted off at 9:21 p.m. Sunday from Space Launch Complex-4 to cheers, screams and whistles from one viewing site in Vandenberg Village.
About nine minutes after lifting off, the first-stage booster, making its third flight, returned to Vandenberg, touching down at Landing Zone 4 west of the launch pad with double sonic booms.
The mission marked SpaceX’s 500th liftoff using a flight-proven booster.”Congratulations to the SpaceX team on completing 500 (!!!!) missions with flight-proven rocket boosters. You’ve made the impossible possible with reusable rockets…,” Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceX president and chief operating officer, said on social media.
Approximately an hour after liftoff, Sentinel-6B separated from the rocket and later communicated with controllers on the ground, according to NASA, which reported the craft’s systems remained healthy upon arriving in space.
Sentinel-6B, involving NASA and the European Space Agency, will collect measurements of the sea surface heights for most of the world’s oceans to continue an effort spanning decades.
“Sentinel-6B was transported in an unusual way here to California,” said Pierrik Veuilleumier, Sentinel-6B project manager for ESA.
Instead of flying the satellite aboard an airplane to the United States, Sentinel-6B traveled by cargo ship to cross the Atlantic Ocean. After arriving in Texas, the spacecraft traveled by truck to reach Santa Barbara County.
For the trans-Atlantic and road trips, the satellite sat in a climate-controlled container, arriving at Vandenberg in mid-August.
“The voyage went very well, and we are ready here for a very successful launch I’m sure of Sentinel-6B,” he added Saturday.
Since then, teams completed various chores to prep Sentinel-6B for its placement on the rocket ahead of the flight aboard Falcon 9 for the final leg of the lengthy journey.
Data collected by Sentinel-6B satellites will be used for a variety of purposes including commercial fishing and shipping, weather forecasting and more.
“Sentinel-6B is a testament to the value of NASA’s partnership missions to put actionable satellite information and science into the hands of decision-makers on the ground,” said Karen St. Germain, director, NASA Earth Science Division at the agency’s headquarters.
“Sentinel-6B will collect ocean surface observations that will inform decisions critical to coastal communities, commercial shipping and fishing, national defense, and emergency preparedness and response. This is what NASA does — puts advanced technology and science into action for the benefit of the nation,” St. Germain said.
Once operational, the new satellite will continue decades of data about oceans collected by earlier spacecraft, many of which also launched from the Central Coast.
“This achievement demonstrates what can be accomplished when international agencies and industries work together toward a shared goal,” said Simonetta Cheli, director, ESA’s Earth Observation Programmes. “Sentinel-6B will ensure we continue to collect the high-precision data needed to understand our changing climate, safeguard our oceans and support decisions that protect coastal communities around the world.”
Vandenberg’s next launch could occur as soon as Wednesday.
After delays due to the government shutdown, the Transporter-15 mission aboard a Falcon 9 rocket is back on track with liftoff aiming for between 10:18 and 11:15 a.m. Wednesday.
The mission has been delayed due to a Federal Aviation Administration order temporarily restricting commercial launches to taking place only between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. local time at U.S. launch sites.
On Sunday, FAA officials announced the end of the order for airport and spaceport operations, effective Monday morning.