ESA Galileo: Soyuz launch glitch linked to frozen Hydrazine fuel pipe

A frozen fuel pipe in the upper stage of a Soyuz launcher likely caused the failure last month to place two European navigation satellites in orbit, a source close to the inquiry said Wednesday.

Confirming a report in French daily Le Monde, the source said investigators suspect a pipe containing hydrazine fuel, used by the Fregat upper stage to drive the satellites to their orbital slots, had frozen during launch.

The hydrazine pipes are located near a pipe that circulates ultra-cold liquid helium, the source said.

The two satellites, launched from Europe's base in Kourou, French Guiana, were intended to be the first two fully operational satellites in the new-generation navigation system Galileo.

30-satellite Galileo constellation. 

Credit: ESA

Two more satellites had been expected to be hoisted by the end of 2014, opening the way for a first phase of Galileo services in 2015, including applications for smartphones and in-car navigation and search-and-rescue location.

By 2017, according to the Galileo schedule, all 24 operational satellites would be in place.

Six backups would join the fleet by 2020, at which point the system would be fully operational.

Launched by a Russian-made Soyuz, the misplaced satellites should have been slotted into a circular orbit at an altitude of 23,500 kilometres (14,600 miles), inclined at 56 degrees to the equator.

Instead, they were placed in an useless elliptical orbit at a height of 17,000 kilometres (11,000 miles).

The failure adds to a catalogue of problems encountered by the 5.4-billion-euro ($7.2-billion) programme, designed to give the EU independence in satellite navigation from the US Global Positioning System (GPS).

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ESA Galileo IOV in orbit. 

Credit: ESA

Galileo, according to the project's defenders, will be more accurate and have a stronger signal, particularly in built-up areas, than its competitors.

GPIM spacecraft to validate use of "green" propellant

Artist rendition of NASA's Green Propellant Infusion Mission (GPIM) that will demonstrate and test the capabilities of a high-performance, non-toxic, “green” fuel on orbit. 

Credit: Image courtesy of Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp.

Milestone progress is being made in readying NASA's Green Propellant Infusion Mission (GPIM) for launch in 2016, a smallsat designed to test the unique attributes of a high-performance, non-toxic, "green" fuel on orbit.

The GPIM marks the first time the United States will use a spacecraft to test green propellant technology, thereby showcasing the innovation needed to develop a fully domestic, green propellant solution for the next generation of space flight.

GPIM is a Technology Demonstration Mission made possible by NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) and draws upon a government-industry team of specialists.

"The GPIM project symbolizes what we do best in STMD," said Timothy Chen, program executive for Technology Demonstration Missions at NASA Headquarters.

"We invest in break-through technologies that will fundamentally change the way industry does things."

"We enable critical technologies such as the green propellant to buy down the risk of development so that NASA, industry and other government agencies can use the technology as close to off-the-shelf as possible."

"The GPIM project has continued to make significant progress towards proving a mission-capable green alternative to mono propellant hydrazine thrusters."

The propellant and new propulsion technology offer several advantages for future commercial, university, and government satellites, such as longer mission durations, additional maneuverability, increased payload space, and simplified launch processing.

Alternative fuel
The propellant, a Hydroxyl Ammonium Nitrate fuel/oxidizer mix, also is known as AF-M315E. This fuel may replace the highly toxic hydrazine and complex bi-propellant systems in-use today.

Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. of Boulder, Colorado is the prime contractor for GPIM and is leading the demonstration of the alternative fuel for future space vehicles.

"Green fuel is not only great in terms of handling and safety, it is also a very high-performance rocket fuel," said Chris McLean, principal investigator for GPIM at Ball Aerospace.

"It opens the mission trade space for expanded science operations and/or increased durations."

The green propulsion system will fly aboard the tried-and-true Ball Configurable Platform 100 spacecraft bus, a cost-saving approach, McLean added, since this is the third build of this bus.

The AF-M315E fuel for GPIM was developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory at Edwards Air Force Base in California.

The propellant offers nearly 50 percent higher performance for a given propellant tank volume compared to a conventional hydrazine system.


Credit: NASA Marshall Space Flight Center

Ball Aerospace technicians use specialized equipment to build the GPIM satellite so that the space vehicle instruments and thrusters align perfectly with the payload interface. 

Credit: Courtesy of Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp.

GPIM team
The GPIM is among several other payloads to be lofted in 2016 by a SpaceX Falcon Heavy booster.

GPIM team co-investigators also include NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory at Edwards Air Force Base, with additional mission support from the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center at Kirkland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, New Mexico, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland and NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The GPIM effort is managed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

"One of the things that I love about technology demonstration missions is that for a relatively low dollar amount we are capable of doing significant technology advancements," said McLean of Ball Aerospace. "Everybody on the program is contributing to the success of GPIM."

ESA: Green’ satellite fuel designed to make space safer

On the day running up to launch when a spacecraft is fuelled, ground personnel look more like astronauts than engineers, putting on spacesuit-like protective gear.

This is an essential precaution when dealing with the current hydrazine fuel, but a new development could make satellite fuelling no more dangerous than filling up a car.

First used in rocket engines by the German Luftwaffe during World War Two, hydrazine remains the main propellant of choice for a satellite’s onboard thrusters, used for orbit correction or stationkeeping during its working life.

It is a high-performing storable propellant that is also ‘hypergolic’ – meaning it ignites spontaneously on contact with oxidiser or by itself with a catalyst, which makes a spacecraft designer’s job a lot easier.

Unfortunately hydrazine is also highly corrosive and extremely toxic. When leaked into the environment, it degrades in a few days but has the potential to harm plants and marine life, while exposure is considered harmful to people at just 50 parts per million.

Seeking an alternative, ESA has been working with a Swedish company called ECAPS, part of the Swedish Space Corporation Group, to build and test a thruster that runs on a safer, more environmentally friendly fuel.

ECAPS informs us that the development of High Performance Green Propulsion (HPGP) was initiated with the goal of meeting the requirements for future satellite missions. After more than 10 years of R&D, the HPGP technology is emerging as an enabling technology for improved performance, enhanced volumetric efficiency, reduction of propellant handling hazards and safer launch operations.

The HPGP technology developed by ECAPS, includes a storable monopropellant blend based on Ammonium DiNitramide (ADN) and thrusters with high-temperature resistant thrust chamber and catalyst.

For more information you can download ECAPS HPGP brochure here