Fifi, Riri, Loulou, Rose and a hodgepodge of other satellites, some sporting unique names and others with less imaginative monikers but important missions, headed to space aboard a Falcon 9 rocket that lifted off Monday afternoon at Vandenberg Space Force Base.
The SpaceX rocket blasted off at 2:05 p.m. from Space Launch Complex-4 on South Base for the Transporter-10 mission, with 53 payloads on board the ride into orbit.
More than 7 minutes after the departure, the rocket’s first-stage booster landed at Vandenberg, with sonic booms sounding the return and completion of its fifth flight and the 280th landing of an orbital class rocket.
Delivery of the various payloads started nearly 54 minutes after launch and wrapped up about 2 1/2 hours after liftoff.
SpaceX plans to conduct three rideshare missions to sun-synchronous orbit each year, but also offers customers a chance to hitch a ride on Starlink missions.
“Our goal with these missions is to provide small satellite operators competitive pricing, increased flight opportunities and flexibility,” said Atticus Vadera from SpaceX.
“On today’s mission, we’re flying many exciting payloads from one that will one day help address the issue of space debris, to in-space surveillance and reconnaissance support, earth imaging and emissions tracking and several payloads intended to demonstrate and grow in-space technologies,” Vadera added.
One quartet, dubbed Rose, Loulou, Riri, and Fifi, from AerospaceLab carried two distinct Earth observation payloads with signal intelligence and very high resolution to demonstrate radio frequency monitoring as well as high-resolution imaging capabilities, according to Exolaunch, which helps small satellites customers get their payloads into space.
Another payload, LizzieSat from Sidus Space, is a multi-mission spacecraft, or what the firm calls a Space Platform with a Purpose, that can accommodate various payloads for customers needing a satellite frame for their instrument headed to space.
LizzieSat-1 was dubbed Thelma to celebrate “the indomitable spirit and enduring legacy” of Thelma Bovard, the adoptive mother of Carol Craig, Sidus founder and CEO.
“Thelma was an inspiration to women throughout her life as she earned a master’s degree in mathematics education during a time when women were rarely seen on a college campus,” the firm’s website said, noting that at the time few women pursued STEM-related majors.
Another spacecraft, MethaneSAT, is touted as the most advanced methane detecting satellite and came from a nonprofit organization.
A subsidiary of the nonprofit Environmental Defense Fund developed MethaneSAT, designed to see and quantify total methane emissions over wide areas that other satellites can’t and identify large emitters in places they aren’t looking.
“Cutting methane pollution from fossil fuel operations, agriculture and other sectors is the single fastest way to slow the rate of warming as we continue to decarbonize our energy systems,” said EDF President Fred Krupp. “To do that requires comprehensive data on this pollution on a global scale. MethaneSAT will show us the full scope of the opportunity by tracking emissions to their source.”
The spacecraft will circle Earth 15 times a day measuring changes in methane concentrations as small as three parts per billion.
“MethaneSAT’s superpower is the ability to precisely measure methane levels with high resolution over wide areas, including smaller, diffuse sources that account for most emissions in many regions,” said Steven Hamburg, EDF chief scientist and MethaneSAT project leader. “Knowing how much methane is coming from where and how the rates are changing is essential.”
Once it becomes operational, interactive emissions data will be available directly from www.MethaneSAT.org and on Google Earth Engine, a platform used by over 100,000 experts and analysts.
Vandenberg’s Falcon rocket launch was one of three in 20 hours with the other two taking place from Florida.