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| Venus Express Launch |
| This is the final entry in the Venus Express Launch Campaign journal series, which ran from July 2005 until the launch in November 2005. The journal covered the main activities during this period: from the shipment of the spacecraft to the launch site in Kazakhstan, through the final integration of the spacecraft with the launcher, to the launch of Venus Express. |
| Date: 08 Nov 2005 |
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| Venus Express Launch Dress Rehearsal |
| After completion of the pre-launch sequence yesterday, Sunday 6 November 2005, the spacecraft has been left switched-ON over night and its health status was constantly being monitored by two shifts of baby-sitting teams. |
| Date: 07 Nov 2005 |
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| Pre-launch Sequence |
| After the completion of the activities of 5 November, the first day on the launch pad, the spacecraft was switched-off, and only a small "baby-sitting" team remained in the bunker over night to be able to cover any contingency situations.
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| Date: 06 Nov 2005 |
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| Roll Out to Launch Pad |
| The rollout of the Soyuz launcher carrying the Venus Express Spacecraft has taken place at launch pad number 6 of the Baikonur Cosmodrome on Saturday 5 November 2005 starting at 01:30 UT (07:30 local time), just half an hour before sunrise. |
| Date: 05 Nov 2005 |
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| Final Integration |
| On Friday 4 November the final integration of the Soyuz launch vehicle with the Venus Express Spacecraft atop has taken place in the MIK-40 integration building. The launch vehicle and its passenger are now fully assembled and preparations are ongoing for the rollout to the launch pad planned for Saturday 5 November at 07:30 in the morning local time (01:30 UT). |
| Date: 05 Nov 2005 |
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| New Launch Date for Venus Express |
| On Monday 31 October, following a final cleaning and inspection of the Venus Express Spacecraft, the payload fairing of the Soyuz launch vehicle was installed again after it had been removed just a week before after the discovery of contaminants. |
| Date: 03 Nov 2005 |
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| Testing Upper Composite - Third Stage Electrical Connections |
| Today, Thursday 20 October 2005, there were no on-line activities performed on the Venus Express Spacecraft. The day was spent by performing electrical verifications between the launcher's third stage and the upper composite which has been mechanically mated yesterday. |
| Date: 20 Oct 2005 |
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| Mating of Upper Composite with Third Stage |
| Today, Wednesday 19 October 2005, at 02:45 in the morning (18 October, 20:45 UTC) the upper composite with the Venus Express spacecraft arrived in the MIK-40 launch vehicle integration building. The journey by transport train from the MIK-112 facility took five and a half hours. |
| Date: 19 Oct 2005 |
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| Transport to Final Launcher Assembly Building |
| Tuesday, 18 October 2005, the upper composite was prepared by the Russian launcher team for the transfer from the current integration building MIK-112 to the final launcher assembly building MIK-40. |
| Date: 18 Oct 2005 |
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| Fairing Installation |
| Today, Monday 17 October 2005, the payload fairing has been successfully installed on the nose block (composite of Fregat Upper Stage and Venus Express spacecraft). The first part of the activity was the tilting of the nose block from vertical to horizontal position. With both the spacecraft and the Upper Stage being fully fuelled the activity is classified as hazardous, and was hence conducted with the minimum number of personnel present in the clean room. |
| Date: 17 Oct 2005 |
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| Arming Onboard Pyrotechnics |
| Friday 14 October finally saw one of the last activities before the spacecraft encapsulation under the fairing: the arming of all on-board pyrotechnic devices. Venus Express carries on-board pyrotechnic devices that will, in flight, drive the opening of propellant lines of the propulsion system, initiate deployment of the solar array wings, and also control the deployment of the boom of the MAG instrument. |
| Date: 14 Oct 2005 |
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| Venus Express Umbilical Connections Tests |
| Today, 13 October, saw the first switch-on of the Venus Express spacecraft after its mating with the Fregat Upper Stage. |
| Date: 13 Oct 2005 |
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| Venus Express Mated with Fregat |
| Today, 12 October, the composite of the Launch Vehicle Adapter and Spacecraft, or stack, has been mechanically mated with the Fregat upper stage. |
| Date: 12 Oct 2005 |
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| Nearing the End of the Beginning |
| The Venus Express spacecraft is nearing completion now as the Gallium Arsenide Triple Junction Solar Arrays are integrated and tested now. The Solar Arrays will provide the required 1100 Watts of power to the spacecraft systems. The cells of the solar arrays are typically operating at temperatures in excess of 100 °C. |
| Date: 19 Sep 2005 |
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| Electrical Testing Successful |
| With under 50 days to launch Venus Express has passed another milestone with the successful completion of the System Verification Test 2 (2 September 2005) which marks the end of main electrical functional testing. |
| Date: 06 Sep 2005 |
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| Last Major System Test Successfully Started: SVT-2 |
| The System Verification Test 2 was started yesterday with a successful test of the launch sequence and initial control acquisition of the satellite by ESOC. This series of activities mimics very closely the events that will occur in about 57 days from now. The SVT-2 is a test where the Venus Mission Operation Centre (VMOC) in Darmstadt commands the satellite, located in Baikonur, remotely to simulate the operations that will eventually be performed in space. The test will continue until the end of the week. |
| Date: 30 Aug 2005 |
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| Integrated System Test-3: Underway and On Time |
| The past week has seen the beginning of the IST-3. The payload has been tested and confirmed to be in good condition after the shipment to the launch site earlier this month. The remainder of the satellite will now be tested to ensure its readiness for launch. The pace of activities is well measured and the launch teams are working steadily towards their goal of the October 26 launch. |
| Date: 22 Aug 2005 |
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| First Major Test Completed Successfully |
| During the launch campaign the Venus Express satellite undergoes a serious of last technical verifications leading up to launch. The first of these verifications has just been completed. The test confirms that the Combined Propulsion System is leak tight and ready to receive the 570 kg fuel load at a later date in the campaign. The tests were performed successfully by the CPS manufacturer's team of ASTRIUM UK. |
| Date: 16 Aug 2005 |
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| Venus Express on the Move |
| The Venus Express satellite, including all of its supporting equipment has moved to Baikonur as planned and arrived on time and on schedule. The equipment was transported using two Antonov 124 freight aircraft seen here being loaded in Toulouse and on its way in the skies to Baikonur. |
| Date: 10 Aug 2005 |
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| Flight Acceptance Review Completed |
| A major milestone in the life of Venus Express occurred on 1 July in ESTEC, Noordwijk, with the completion of the Flight Acceptance Review Board meeting. Activities are now concentrated on completing final spacecraft preparations and finishing any open work needed before moving to Baikonur early in August. |
| Date: 04 Jul 2005 |
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