SpaceX is targeting Thursday, May 2 for launch of the Maxar 1 mission to orbit from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The 14-minute window opens at 11:36 a.m. PT. If needed, a backup launch opportunity is available on Friday, May 3 at the same time.
A live webcast of this mission will begin on X @SpaceX about 15 minutes prior to liftoff. Watch live.
The satellites are meant to enhance and eventually replace Maxar Intelligence’s fleet of four satellites that collect pictures and data about the planet’s surface. The WorldView Legion satellites cost about $700 million to build. Maxar Intelligence provides a variety of access options in order for defense, intelligence and commercial customers to meet their mission requirements and collection timeframes.
The next evolution of Maxar’s industry-leading constellation, WorldView Legionis a fleet of high-performance satellites that will dramatically expand the ability to revisit the most rapidly changing areas on Earth to better inform critical, time-sensitive decisions. From defense and intelligence to living maps for navigation, WorldView Legion satellite imagery will support valuable missions — at unmatched speed, quality and scale with:
— Up to 15 revisits per day
— 30 cm-class resolution
— <1.5 m RMSE accuracy
— 5 million sq km daily collection capacity
This will be the 20th flight for the Falcon 9 first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched Crew-1, Crew-2, SXM-8, CRS-23, IXPE, Transporter-4, Transporter-5, Globalstar FM15, ISI EROS C-3, Korea 425, and nine Starlink missions. After stage separation, the first stage will land on Landing Zone 4 (LZ-4) at Vandenberg Space Force Base.
Reports indicate that SpaceX may launch Maxar’s Worldview Legion 1 & 2 mission on May 1 from Vandenberg SFB, California at 11:30 AM – 12:24 PM PDT. Prior to this there were several postponements of the launch.
The telescopes are intended to replace the capacities of the WorldView-1, WorldView-2, and GeoEye-1 satellites. SSL (formerly Space Systems/Loral), a subsidiary of Maxar, is building the satellites. Raytheon, a subsidiary of RTX Corporation, will provide the cameras.
The satellites will be able to record panchromatic resolutions of up to 0.29 meters. Images with resolutions of up to 1.16 m should be possible on a multispectral level. The satellites can photograph the exact locations up to 40 times a day. A total of two satellites will operate in a polar orbit and four satellites in a sun-synchronous orbit.
Space Launch Complex 4E has witnessed the launch of 141 rockets, including 141 orbital launch attempts, while Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA, has been the site for 752 rocket launches.
SpaceX launch of Maxar’s WorldView Legion mission a No-Go
The WorldView Legion mission was postponed the day before launch and, with support ship Go Beyond now returned to the Port of Long Beach and the listing removed from the FAA Operations Plan Advisory, could be delayed for some time.
The booster, which had yet to be confirmed, was expected to return to land on the pad at Landing Zone 4 located around 400 meters away from the launch mount.
After stage separation, the Falcon 9 booster will make a land landing (land-to-land-landing) at the Landing Zone 4 (LZ-4) at the Vandenberg Space Force Base. WorldView Legion is a planned series of high-resolution earth observation satellites from the US company Maxar Technologies.
They are intended to replace the capacities of the WorldView-1, WorldView-2, and GeoEye-1 satellites. SSL (formerly Space Systems/Loral), a subsidiary of Maxar, is building the satellites. Raytheon, a subsidiary of RTX Corporation, will provide the cameras.
The satellites will be able to record panchromatic resolutions of up to 0.29 meters. Images with resolutions of up to 1.16 m should be possible on a multispectral level. The satellites can photograph the exact locations up to 40 times a day. A total of two satellites will operate in a polar orbit and four satellites in a sun-synchronous orbit.
A Falcon 9 was originally scheduled to launch from SLC-4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base on Wednesday, April 17, at 11:30 AM PDT (18:30 UTC), taking two satellites massing a total of 1,500 kilograms into a Sun-synchronous orbit.
SpaceX to launch Maxar WorldView Legion 1 & 2 mission for leading resolution and accuracy
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the WorldView Legion 1 & 2 mission on Wednesday, April 17, 2024 at 6:30 PM (UTC). WorldView Legion is a constellation of Earth observation satellites built and operated by Maxar. Constellation is planned to consist of 6 satellites in both polar and mid-inclination orbits, providing 30 cm-class resolution.
These are the first two of six planned WorldView Legion satellites, which will enhance Maxar Intelligence’s constellation by delivering industry-leading resolution and accuracy. When all six WorldView Legion satellites are launched, it will triple Maxar Intelligence’s capacity to collect 30 cm-class and multispectral imagery. The full Maxar constellation of 10 electro-optical satellites will image the most rapidly changing areas on Earth as frequently as every 20 to 30 minutes, from sunup to sundown.
“WorldView Legion will extend the quality and capability of our industry-leading constellation, redefining Earth observation constellation performance and providing customers with unprecedented access to timely, actionable insights that help drive mission success,” said Dan Smoot, Maxar Intelligence CEO.
These Maxar Space Systems-built satellites are the first Maxar 500™ series buses to complete production at the company’s satellite manufacturing locations in Palo Alto and San Jose, California. The Maxar 500 series bus is a mid-size platform that can be tailored for multiple missions and orbits. As part of the WorldView Legion program, Maxar invested to create a bus with better stability, agility and pointing accuracy; future Maxar 500 customers can benefit from this technology for their missions.
“WorldView Legion and the Maxar 500 series platform is the culmination of decades of experience in building satellites for customer missions,” said Chris Johnson, Maxar Space Systems CEO. “We are excited to reach this important program milestone and look forward to continued partnership on the program.”
The launch of the first two WorldView Legion satellites will be broadcast on spacex.com and on x.com/spacex.
Space Launch Complex 4E has witnessed the launch of 141 rockets, including 141 orbital launch attempts, while Vandenberg SFB, California, has been the site for 752 rocket launches. The launch cost is $52 Million.
