Orbital Minotaur I - Manual (Page 24)

Minotaur I User’s Guide Section 3.0 – General Performance
3. GENERAL PERFORMANCE
3.1. Mission Profiles
Minotaur I can attain a range of posigrade and retrograde inclinations through the choice of launch sites
made available by the readily adaptable nature of the Minotaur I launch system. A generic mission profile
to a sun-synchronous orbit is shown in Figure 3.1-1. All performance parameters presented within this
User’s Guide are typical for most expected payloads. However, performance may vary depending on
unique payload or mission characteristics. Specific requirements for a particular mission must be
coordinated with OSP. Once a mission is formally initiated, the requirements will be documented in the
Mission Requirements Document (MRD). The MRD is the requirement kick off document that initiates the
contractual agreement and flows the payload requirements to Orbital. The MRD establishes the data
required to begin formal trajectory analysis as well as Coupled Loads Analyses (CLAs). Further detail will
be captured in the Payload-to-Launch Vehicle Interface Control Document (ICD).
Figure 3.1-1. Minotaur I Generic Mission Profile
3.2. Launch Sites
Depending on the specific mission, Minotaur I can operate from East and West Coast launch sites as
illustrated in Figure 3.2-1. The corresponding range inclination capabilities are shown in Figure 3.2-2.
Specific performance parameters are presented in Section 3.3. The baseline launch site for Minotaur I is
VAFB.
Release 3.0 March 2014 11