Intelsat 40e

Intelsat 40e is a geostationary satellite that will provide Intelsat’s government and private customers across North and Central America with “coast-to-coast” communications services.

The satellite’s capabilities will support the customers that depend on Intelsat’s services and solutions to easily integrate satellite into their overall networking strategies.

In 2017, SpaceX launched Intelsat 35e, a satellite currently providing high-throughput coverage for Intelsat customers in portions of North and South America, Europe, and Africa.

TEMPO

The TEMPO (Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring Pollution) mission is NASA's first Earth Venture Instrument to measure pollution in North America, from Mexico City to the Canadian oil sands, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific hourly and at high spatial resolution. TEMPO observations are from the geostationary vantage point, flying aboard the Intelsat 40e satellite.

The instrument, an ultraviolet and visible spectrometer was completed in 2019, to a geostationary orbit (GEO) about 22,000 miles (35,405 km) above Earth's equator. This vantage point will enable TEMPO to monitor daily variations in ozone, nitrogen dioxide, and other key elements of air pollution.

The instrument will resolve pollution levels to regions of several square miles—far better than existing limits of about 100 square miles.

TEMPO is the first funded project of NASA's Earth Venture Instrument program, which includes small, targeted science investigations designed to complement NASA's larger research missions. It is part of the agency's Earth System Science Pathfinder program.

TEMPO'’s new stream of data will enable researchers to improve pollution emission inventories, monitor population exposure, and evaluate effective emission-control strategies. It will also provide near-real-time air quality products that will be made publicly available and will help improve air quality forecasting.

TEMPO is being launched during a time frame when two other pollution-monitoring satellites from Europe (Sentinel 4) and Asia (GEMS) will also be in operation. The three instruments together will form a global GEO constellation for air quality monitoring later this decade and next, including a major focus on intercontinental pollution transport across the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

Credit: TEMPO

Falcon 9 is a reusable, two-stage rocket designed and manufactured by SpaceX for the reliable and safe transport of people and payloads into Earth orbit and beyond.

Falcon 9 is the world’s first orbital-class reusable rocket.

Stats

Total launches: 403

Total landings: 359

Total reflights: 333

The Falcon 9 has launched 52 humans into orbit since May 2020

Specs

Height: 70 m / 229.6 ft

Diameter: 3.7 m / 12 ft

Mass: 549,054 kg / 1,207,920 lb

Payload to Low Earth Orbit (LEO): 22,800 kg / 50,265 lb

Payload to Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO): 8,300 kg / 18,300 lb

Payload to Mars: 4,020 kg / 8,860 lb

On January 24, 2021, Falcon 9 launched the first ride-share mission to Sun Synchronous Orbit. It was delivering a record-setting 143 satellites to space. And while this was an important mission for SpaceX in itself, it was also the moment Falcon 9 overtook United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V for the total number of consecutive successful launches.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 had become America’s workhorse rocket, launching 31 times in 2021. It has already beaten that record this year, launching almost an average of once a week. While most of the launches deliver Starlink satellites to orbit, the company is still launching the most commercial payloads to orbit, too.

Falcon 9 is a medium-lift launch vehicle, with the capability to launch over 22.8 metric tonnes to low earth orbit. Unlike any other rocket, its first stage lands back on Earth after separating from its second stage. In part, this allows SpaceX to offer the cheapest option for most customers with payloads that need to reach orbit.

Under its ride-share program, a kilogram can be placed in a sun-synchronous orbit for a mere 1.1 million dollars, far cheaper than all other currently operating small satellite launch vehicles.

The reusability and fast booster turnaround times have made Falcon 9 the preferred choice for private companies and government agencies. This has allowed SpaceX to capture a huge portion of the launch market.

Photo courtesy of Jenny Hautmann for Supercluster.

Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) is one of two launch sites leased by SpaceX at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) in Florida, specifically designed for preparing and launching Falcon 9 rockets. Constructed in the early 1960s, SLC-40 was initially used for 55 Titan III and Titan IV rocket launches, including the Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn. The pad was active from June 18, 1965, to April 30, 2005.

SpaceX began leasing SLC-40 in 2007, converting it to support Falcon 9 rockets. The pad was first upgraded to accommodate the original version of Falcon 9 and later received another upgrade in 2013 to handle the larger, reusable Falcon 9 rocket. On September 1, 2016, an explosion during a Falcon 9 fueling test caused severe damage to the pad. It was rebuilt rapidly, with construction completed in just 10 months, from mid-February to late November 2017. SLC-40 resumed operations with the successful launch of a Dragon capsule to the International Space Station on December 15, 2017.

After adding a crew access arm to the launch tower, SpaceX launched their first crewed mission from SLC-40 on Saturday, September 28th 2024 for NASA's Crew-9 mission to the International Space Station.

Under SpaceX’s management, SLC-40 has been the site of numerous significant missions. Notable launches include the first all-commercial Dragon mission to the International Space Station, NASA’s DSCOVR mission, the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) for NASA and MIT, the first satellite for Turkmenistan, the classified Zuma mission for Northrop Grumman and the U.S. government, the first GPS-III satellite, and the Beresheet lunar lander for Israel. Additionally, in September 2024, SLC-40 will host its first crewed launch with SpaceX’s Crew-9 mission, marking a new milestone for the pad.

Cape Canaveral is a major launch site with four currently active launch pads for Atlas V, Delta IV Heavy, Falcon 9, and Minotaur rockets. Located on Florida’s east coast, it offers extensive access to space for a variety of missions, including those targeting the Space Station, Geostationary Earth Orbit, the Moon, interplanetary destinations, and polar trajectories. The site’s location ensures that launches occur over the open Atlantic Ocean, minimizing risks to populated areas.

Cape Canaveral is often confused with or referred to alongside NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on Merritt Island. While they are separate installations, both play pivotal roles in the U.S. space program. Cape Canaveral has a storied history of significant space missions, including the launch of the first U.S. Earth satellite, Explorer 1, in 1958; the first U.S. astronaut, Alan Shepard, in 1961; the first U.S. astronaut in orbit, John Glenn, in 1962; the launch of the first two-person U.S. spacecraft, Gemini 3, in 1965; and the first U.S. uncrewed lunar landing mission, Surveyor 1, in 1966.

SLC-40 and Cape Canaveral continue to be integral to SpaceX’s ambitious launch schedule and the broader U.S. space program, supporting a wide range of missions and contributing to advancements in space exploration.

Photo courtesy of Jenny Hautmann for Supercluster

A Shortfall of Gravitas" (ASOG) is one of SpaceX’s Autonomous Spaceport Drone Ships, designed to recover Falcon 9 rocket boosters at sea. Operating primarily in the Atlantic Ocean from Port Canaveral, Florida, ASOG joined SpaceX’s fleet in 2021. It plays a crucial role in SpaceX's reusability program, enabling the recovery and refurbishment of rocket boosters for future missions.

The name "A Shortfall of Gravitas" is inspired by science fiction author Iain M. Banks' Culture series, known for its playful and philosophical ship names. ASOG is fully autonomous, capable of sailing to its designated landing area and maintaining position without the need for a tugboat. Equipped with advanced thrusters, it ensures precise positioning even in challenging weather conditions and features a large landing platform for booster recovery.

ASOG is essential for missions requiring high velocities or distant orbits where landing on solid ground is not feasible. By recovering boosters at sea, ASOG helps SpaceX reduce costs and enhance the sustainability of spaceflight.

Photo courtesy to Jenny Hautmann for Supercluster