Orbital Antares - Manual (Page 12)

Antares
®
OSP-3
User’s Guide
Section 1.0
– Introduction
Release 1.1 July 2013 1
1. INTRODUCTION
The objective of the Antares OSP-3 User’s Guide is to familiarize payload mission planners with Orbital’s
Antares launch service as available through the OSP-3 contract. This document provides an overview of
the Antares system design and a description of the standard launch services provided to our customers.
Orbital also offers a variety of enhanced services to allow maximum flexibility in satisfying customer re-
quirements.
1.1. Orbital History
Orbital is a leading developer and manufacturer of small and medium class space systems. Orbital has
three decades of demonstrated reliable, rapid and affordable development and production experience,
serving customers in the commercial, defense and civil government markets. Orbital has delivered or is
under contract for over 1,000 space products, including satellites and space systems, space and strategic
launch vehicles, and sub-orbital target vehicles and sounding rockets.
Orbital is a domestic launch service provider and an ISO-9001/2008 certified company. Founded in 1982,
Orbital has pioneered new classes of rockets, satellites, and other space-based technologies that help
make the benefits of space more affordable and accessible.
1.2. Antares Launch Vehicle
The Antares is a flight proven two stage, ground launched vehicle. Conservative design margins, state-
of-the-art structural systems, a modular avionics architecture, and a simplified integration and test ap-
proach yield a robust, highly reliable launch vehicle design. In addition, Antares payload accommoda-
tions and interfaces are flexible and satisfy a wide range of potential customer requirements. Each ele-
ment of the Antares launch system is developed to maximize payload mass to orbit, streamline the mis-
sion design and payload integration process, and to provide safe, reliable space launch services.
The baseline launch site for the Antares launch service is on the NASA Wallops Flight Facility (WFF) and
supported by the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS). A cornerstone of the Antares program is the
simplified integration and test capabilities that include horizontal integration of the vehicle stages and the
payload. This horizontal integration process and mobile Ground Support Equipment (GSE) implemented
at WFF would be replicated at
Orbital’s high inclination launch site – the Kodiak Launch Complex (KLC) in
Kodiak, Alaska.