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During its major space warfare exercise AsterX 2023, the Aerospace Forces Space Command simulated the loss of a satellite in low orbit and imagined being able to recover and replace it during operations. “Just imaginary,” considering that neither France nor the US are capable of replacing a destroyed low-orbit satellite in the short term. The problem is becoming more and more urgent as there are more and more ways to destroy a satellite in orbit: rockets, laser blinding, hacking, etc.
Reduce the duration of the shooting campaign as much as possible
When a satellite is deployed into orbit, the flight preparation time is generally measured in weeks. Often there are two or more. What happens during this time? This is called a shooting campaign. This begins with the final assembly of the launch vehicle at the launch site, sometimes on the launch pad or in a building in front of it. The launcher is assembled and then tested. If we talk about testing, sometimes there is a short test launch of the main stage (the static fire), but what is mainly tested is its compliance with the launch pad and the infrastructures necessary for the launch: communications, hydraulics for filling tanks, connections, security, etc .
The launch campaign also takes into account the arrival of the satellite(s) at the launch site. On site, teams sometimes check that they have not suffered from transportation from their factory, fill them with fuel using the famous Ergoliers and then integrate them into the upper stage of the launch vehicle. Here too, consistency tests are carried out between the satellite and the launch vehicle to ensure that they do not interfere with each other. We also check whether the satellite communicates well. Then the shooting campaign culminates in a dress rehearsal and the launch sequence itself.
Here’s a rough overview of what the shooting campaign entails and why it can last several weeks. To shorten this time, you will undoubtedly have to be less careful with certain steps. We will inevitably have to make certain concessions and therefore take more risks if we ever want to reduce the shooting to just a few days…
A challenge that is already feasible in China?
The drastic reduction in launch time is based on a significant simplification of the processes, but also on a simplification of the launch vehicle and its interaction with the satellite. It certainly remains complicated to achieve this with a large launch vehicle and a large satellite intended for geostationary orbit, for example. But many military satellites only weigh a few hundred kilos. This is often the case with a spy satellite, for example. Small satellite, small launch vehicle… the architectures can therefore be simplified, as can the procedures.
China claims it can launch a small satellite into low orbit in just 48 hours. It relies on the Kuaizhou 1A micro rocket from the industrial company Casic, which uses solid propellants as propulsion. The preparation and armament differ little from the case of an intercontinental ballistic missile that is currently to be deployed. The launch campaign therefore essentially involves the integration of the satellite. As for the launch pad, in the case of the Kuaizhou 1A it is mobile and uses a TEL (Transport – Erection – Launch) vehicle that can theoretically launch from anywhere.
In addition to China, projects for so-called responsive, ultra-responsive launch vehicles have also appeared, but these are not really being pursued. In particular, there was talk of using an air-dropped micro-launcher from an American fighter jet or even firing a small missile from a Russian submarine! In France, Cnes signed a contract with the start-up company Dark Space to study the feasibility of urgently deploying a vehicle to intercept dangerous space debris. We can of course suspect a possible military application.
Victus Nox: the challenge of fitting everything into 60 hours
Given China’s perceived capacity and the increasing vulnerability of its low-orbit satellites (and many others to come), the U.S. Space Force and the Pentagon want the United States to have responsive launch vehicles ready at a moment’s notice Satellite station time. The American operator Rocket Lab, known for its Electron microlauncher, has already set up a research program to put a satellite into low orbit within 24 hours.
Recently, the US Space Command USSF launched the Victus Nox Challenge, to which operator Firefly Aerospace responded in collaboration with satellite manufacturer Millenium Space Systems. In the last six months, both must be ready to launch a satellite in less than 60 hours, knowing only at the last moment where and when it has to be deployed. The challenge is to transport the satellite, named Victus Nox, from its factory to the target launch site of the Firefly Alpha rocket in California, fill the satellite with fuel, install it into the launch vehicle, attach the protective fairing and carry out the task in this limited time Starts.
Where and when ? Victus Nox’s orbital parameters, which define its destination in space, will only be communicated 24 hours before launch; and less than 48 hours later, the satellite must have completed its “commissioning” test phase in orbit and be operational.
Since August 30, Firefly Aerospace has been ready to answer the call from the Pentagon to start the timer. The theft finally occurred on the night of September 14th to 15th. Shortly afterwards, as the first images emerged from around the Vandenberg launch base, Firefly Aerospace announced the success of the flight. What remains is the race against time to get Victus Nox operational. But this mission is already a speed record.