Firefly’s Newest Partnership & Date For Second Orbital Test Flight
Firefly Aerospace has been very exciting to watch as they continue to develop and work towards different ambitious goals for the future. One of the company’s staple projects is the small-lift Alpha launch vehicle. Just around one year ago we watched the maiden flight of this rocket. While it was not 100% successful, the company gained a lot of valuable information and is about to try again.
Specifically, In the last few weeks, Firefly has completed some of the final tests in preparation for the second orbital test flight of Alpha. This includes wet dress rehearsals, static fires, and more, all of which have given the company confidence for a set launch date in only a few weeks. This comes in addition to a recent partnership with Northrop Grumman.
Together they are working to provide an American-built first-stage upgrade for the Antares rocket and a new medium launch vehicle to serve commercial, civil, and national security missions. All of which is making Firefly an exciting company to keep up with. Here I will go more in-depth into some of the recent updates from Firefly, the partnership, and more.
New Partnership
I first want to start by looking at the recent partnership between Firefly Aerospace and Northrop Grumman. Earlier this month on August 8th, Firefly tweeted saying, “Announcement: Exciting news today! Northrop Grumman and Firefly have joined forces to provide an American-built first-stage upgrade for the Antares rocket and a new medium launch vehicle to serve commercial, civil, and national security missions.” This included multiple images of what the rocket is expected to look like. “Through our collaboration, we will first develop a fully domestic version of our Antares rocket, the Antares 330, for Cygnus space station commercial resupply services, followed by an entirely new medium class launch vehicle,” said Scott Lehr, vice president and general manager, launch and missile defense systems, Northrop Grumman. “Northrop Grumman and Firefly have been working on a combined strategy and technical development plan to meet current and future launch requirements.”
Firefly’s propulsion technology utilizes the same propellants as the current Antares rocket, which minimizes launch site upgrades. The Antares 330 will utilize seven of Firefly’s Miranda engines and leverage its composites technology for the first stage structures and tanks, while Northrop Grumman provides its proven avionics and software, upper-stage structures and Castor 30XL motor, as well as proven vehicle integration and launch pad operations. This new stage will also significantly increase Antares mass to orbit capability. “Firefly prides itself on being a disrupter in the new space industry and collaborating with a proven space pioneer like Northrop Grumman will help us continue that disruption,” said Peter Schumacher, interim CEO of Firefly.
One of the reasons this news is so exciting is because of Firefly’s future plans. While right now the company is working hard on reaching orbit with Alpha, they have also been working on Beta or MLV. Firefly describes MLV as a 2-stage launch vehicle capable of delivering 13,000 kg to a 200 km (125 mile) Low Earth Orbit and has the capability of achieving Geosynchronous Transfer Orbits. Additionally, the MLV vehicle utilizes technologies such as all carbon composite tanks, heritage LOx/RP-1 liquid-fueled engines and builds on other elements of the existing Alpha architecture. The design has a lot of similarities to the recent partnership and additions that Firefly is providing. We will have to keep track of this project and see the effect it has on Firefly’s future operations.
Launch Update
Not only did Firefly announce them joining forces with Northrop Grumman but also more updates on the upcoming launch of Alpha. By late last month, the company had fully integrated the launch vehicle onto the pad in preparation for continued testing and the launch itself. On August 9th, Firefly tweeted saying, “Alpha Flight 2 progress: Successful wet dress yesterday as we continue our launch campaign.” Even more recently, just a few days ago on the 17th, they tweeted again this time mentioning, “Launch Update: After completing wet dress last week, we conducted a successful static fire today. Our launch is now scheduled for September 11th. Alpha Flight 2 is ready and headed #ToTheBlack. Stay tuned for more updates.” The tweet included a short video of the static fire. This update is especially exciting because they have a set date only a few weeks away on September 11th. Back on September 2nd of last year, Firefly conducted the maiden flight of its Alpha launch vehicle from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
“Firefly has conducted the first test flight of our Alpha vehicle. The day marked a major advancement for the Firefly team, as we demonstrated that we ‘arrived’ as a company capable of building and launching rockets,” said Tom Markusic, CEO of Firefly Aerospace. “Although the vehicle did not reach orbit, we acquired a wealth of flight data that will greatly enhance the likelihood of Alpha achieving orbit during its second flight. In short, we had a very successful first flight.”
The test began with a nominal countdown and lift off at 6:59 PM PDT and achieved a successful first stage ignition, liftoff from the pad, and progression to supersonic speed. During the flight, the launch vehicle experienced an anomaly that resulted in a safe termination of flight by the Range using the Flight Termination System (FTS). Initial review of flight data indicates that an electrical issue caused the shutdown of one of the four first stage Reaver engines. As stated on September 2nd by Space Launch Delta 30, the Alpha rocket was terminated “over the Pacific Ocean at 7:01 p.m. Pacific Time after a successful liftoff at 6:59 p.m. …. There were no injuries associated with the anomaly.” During the two minutes and twenty-five seconds of flight, Firefly obtained a substantial amount of flight data that will be utilized to improve the design of future Alpha launch vehicles, including the second flight vehicle, which is about to launch.
At the time, Markusic also stated, “Firefly has been incredibly fortunate to have partners that share our vision and passion. The most difficult and perilous days of Firefly Aerospace were funded by Noosphere Ventures, founded by Max Polyakov. Early on, Max and I created the technological and business development roadmap – the first launch of Alpha being a hard-fought landmark achievement for the entire team.” He continued, “The Alpha launch vehicle was developed by a world-class group of talented and dedicated technical directors. Firefly’s Flight and Test Operations Department, led by Anne Chinnery, Brad Obrocto, and Sean Reilly, built Firefly’s launch facility and successfully conducted the first launch.” Dr. Max Polyakov, Firefly’s Co-Founder said, “Alpha’s first launch was a historic day for Firefly. I salute and thank the team that has worked so hard to make the vision of Firefly a reality. In just four years, Firefly has developed and flown an orbital class launch vehicle and is building our Blue Ghost lunar lander to go to the Moon in 2023, incredible accomplishments for such a short time!”
Firefly highlights that Alpha is 100% manufactured in the USA and designed to be the most reliable small satellite launcher available. Alpha’s pump-fed, regeneratively-cooled engines use standard LOx/RP, and their avionics systems, such as the flight computer and communication system, employ COTS components with established flight heritage. Modern advances in carbon composite materials are used to create strong, lightweight primary structures such as propellant tanks. Entirely manufactured and launched in the USA, Firefly is able to keep costs to a minimum while achieving unprecedented dependability. Their dedicated launch facilities on the west and east coast of the US, at Vandenberg Space Force Base Space Launch Complex 2 and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station Space Launch Complex 20, will enable flights as frequent as once per month by late 2022. More specifically, Firefly utilizes advanced carbon-fiber composites for the entire airframe of Alpha, including the state-of-the-art, linerless, cryogenic propellant tanks. Composite materials are ideally suited to launch vehicle structures due to their high strength, low density and tailorable material properties. This allows Firefly Alpha to lift heavier payloads than a similar metal rocket. All of which will be put to the test in only a few weeks in September.
Conclusion
Firefly Aerospace has been very busy over the last few months. Just in August alone the company has made more progress on Alpha in preparation for the second test flight and announced a new partnership with Northrop Grumman. While the first Alpha launch was unable to reach orbit, the company is confident in the upcoming attempt and working hard to get there. We will have to wait and see how it progresses and the impact it has on the space industry.