| WHEN |
WHAT |
February 11, 2013
Time: 10:04 - 10:48 AM |
An Atlas V is scheduled to carry a NASA Landsat follow-on satellite into orbit.
|
September 13, 2012
Time: 2:39PM |
An Atlas V launched a classified payload (NROL-36) and auxiliary "cubesat" payloads into orbit
for the National Reconnaissance Office. (Delayed from August 2)
I watched for the launch from my office in Irvine. Nada.
Russ Schnapp
From the fifth floor of Building R at Pasadena City College, we 2 professors and a handful of students saw the rising trail of smoke. It was a subtle event from this distance and time of day.
David Cuatt
|
April 3, 2012
Time: 4:12PM |
A Delta 4 (with 2 solid rocket boosters) lifted a classified payload into a retrograde
(east-to-west) orbit for the National Reconnaissance Office.
|
October 28, 2011
Time: 2:48 AM Pacific Time |
A Delta 2 launched a NOAA/NASA scientific payload.
We did get up and saw the launch last night. At first it was an
orange-red light on the horizon, looked like it was a boat on the
ocean. When we realized what it was we looked at it through the
binoculars and then we could see it fairly well. It got bigger and
better as it approached us and got higher in the sky. We could
distinctly see the burn - flames etc. so it was pretty neat.
We are glad we got up and watched it. Lucky it was a clear crisp
night last night. Recently, until the last few days, we have had a
lot of fog.
Anyhow thanks for the tip.
Joy & Laurie R.
Solana Beach, CA
|
August 11, 2011
Time: 7:45 AM |
The Minotaur IV is a decommissioned MX ("Peacekeeper") ICBM that has been
modified for use as an orbital (in this case, suborbital) booster by Orbital Sciences Corp. It's an
all-solid-rocket vehicle. The payload for this flight is a hypersonic test article. It will
be boosted into the upper atmosphere and released for a test flight followed by a splashdown
(with no recovery) in the Pacific.
The flight was delayed from 8/10 due to weather conditions.
|
June 10, 2011
Time: 7:20:13 AM Pacific Time |
A long-postponed (from 2009) Argentinian satellite was lifted into orbit by a Delta 2.
(Delayed from June 9 due to a "software issue".)
|
April 14, 2011
Time: 9:24 PM |
An Atlas V took a classified payload from the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office
into orbit. (Postponed from April 12 to allow for an electronics package replacement.)
I got a decent shot from the hills near Murrieta
Best regards,
Adam
Murrieta, CA
|
March 4, 2011
Time: 2:09:43 AM |
A Taurus (solid rocket vehicle manufactured by Orbital Sciences)
launched, intended to lift GLORY, an atmospheric studies satellite, into orbit for NASA, along with
three small academic payloads. Unfortunately, the payload fairing failed to separate, thereby preventing
the payload from achieving orbit.
|
February 6, 2011
Time: 4:26 AM |
A Minotaur I (derived from repurposed Minuteman II ICBM)
launched a National Reconnaissance Office payload into orbit.
Delayed from February 5.
|
January 20, 2011
Time: 1:10 PM |
A Delta 4-Heavy booster carried a National
Reconnaissance Office payload into orbit from Vandenberg Air Force
Base's Space Launch Complex 6. The Delta 4-Heavy is a big machine,
comparable in payload and size to the Titan 4. It uses liquid
hydrogen and liquid oxygen as its propellant and oxidizer,
respectively. This results in a relatively dim exhaust "flame", and a
relatively transparent exhaust (essentially steam).
|
November 5, 2010
Time: 7:20:03 PM |
A Delta 2
launched the COSMO-SkyMed 4,
a European Earth observation satellite. (Delayed several times, due to hardware problems.)
I was able to observe the launch reasonably well from my home in San Diego. After initially focusing
on what turned out to be an aircraft that had just turned on its landing lights on approach to
Lindbergh field, I finally located the vehicle climbing on its first stage engines at around 2 minutes
30 seconds into its flight (long after solid rocket booster burnout and jettison). I was easily able
to fillow the vehicle's incandescent exhaust as it accelerated, finally climbing into the sun during
last 30-45 seconds of the first stage burn. Once it got into the light, the typical bulbous form
of the hyperexpanding exhaust was revealed. After first stage burnout, I was unable to track the second
stage — which is not terribly surprising since the second stage engine is much smaller.
All in all, this flight resulted in a much better experience than I was expecting.
Russ Schnapp
San Diego, CA
|
September 25 2010
Time: 9:41 PM |
A Minotaur IV
launched a surveillance satellite (SBSS).
The Minotaur is constructed largely from Peacekeeper
missile hardware, all of which have been pulled from active service
as a result of arms reduction treaties (Peacekeeper could carry up to
10 independently targeted warheads). This is an all-solid-propellant
vehicle.
Launch was delayed several times until a software problem was resolved.
|
September 20, 2010
Time: 9:04 PM |
An Atlas 5
launched a National Reconnaissance Office payload into orbit. Even the clouds covered
up the launch, although it was broadcast on NASA-TV up until shroud jettison.
I am in South Pasadena (Los Angeles area) and my 5yr old son and I saw
the Atlas-V launch tonight.
We were watching the live webcast of the countdown. At around T-5
seconds, the video froze and did not resume until T+15 sec. We ran
outside at that time and observed stars and Jupiter overhead, but the
western sky was hazy with a marine layer. It appeared foggy at the
launch site in the video. I spotted it as a red dot which started to
grow a little tail when it got about 30degs. above the horizon. The
tail was about as big as your fingertip with your arm extended. We
saw a silver dot trailing away and about 10 sec later we saw the red
dot flicker and go out at what I believe was first stage cutoff.
It was about an hour past his bedtime and he was really tired. I
think he was both a little excited and a little disappointed. Dad is
much more excited by tiny dots in the sky.
Sorry no pictures.
Cheers,
Patrick W.
South Pasadena, CA
|
April 22, 2010
Time: 4:00 PM |
A Minotaur IV
launched a hypersonic research payload (HTV-2) into the atmosphere
over the Pacific. (The test was apparently a failure, as telemetry was not received
from the payload.) The Minotaur is constructed largely from Peacekeeper
missile hardware, all of which have been pulled from active service
as a result of arms reduction treaties (Peacekeeper could carry up to
10 independently targeted warheads). This is an all-solid-propellant
vehicle.
|
December 14, 2009
Time: 6:09:33 AM |
A Delta 2
launched an infrared observatory called
WISE.
From San Diego, I was able to see the incandescent exhaust of the solid rocket boosters
past my neighbor's trees. It was a dim red dot with a faint trail, that soon faded as
the boosters burned out and the vehicle was hidden by haze and clouds. Then, around a minute
later, the vehicle reached sunlight and the exhaust trail bloomed against a dark blue sky. The
exhaust abruptly ended, although I could see a faint white dot continuing to accelerate southwards,
presumably from the still-burning engine. I suspect that the vehicle was only briefly in sunlight
during the launch.
Russ Schnapp
San Diego, CA
|
October 18, 2009
Time: 9:12 AM |
An Atlas 5
launched a DMSP (weather satellite) for the Defense Dept.
|
October 8, 2009
Time: 11:51:29 AM |
A Delta 2
launced a commercial earth imaging satellite (WorldView 2) into orbit.
|
May 5, 2009
Time: 1:24:25 PM |
A Delta 2
launched a R&D satellite into orbit for the Missile Defense Agency.
Watching from fifth floor of PCC's Building R, we saw a faint fast
trail through the bright Pasadena haze. Hard to see . . . there
was some wavy smoke doing a drifting fade-away back at the
horizon/start.
Thanks,
Dave C
Pasadena, CA
|
February 24, 2009
Time: 1:55 AM |
A Taurus XL
lifted off from Vandenberg Air Force Base at around 1:55 AM. Unfortunately, a malfunction (it appears
the payload shroud failed to separate) prevented the vehicle from reaching orbit, and the Orbiting Carbon
Observatory impacted the surface somewhere near Antarctica.
|
February 6, 2009
Time: 2:22 AM |
A Delta 2
sent a weather satellite into orbit for the U.S. civilian NOAA agency. Delayed after problems
with ground equipment on February 4 and 5. (Interesting note:
this satellite, NOAA-N Prime, was damaged in September 2003, when it fell off a cart due to
a rather simple and extremely costly human error.)
|
October 24, 2008
Time: 7:28:11 PM |
A Delta 2
launched an Italian payload, COSMO-SkyMed, into orbit for the Italian Space Agency. The launch took
place 80+ minutes after sunset, so the exhaust plume wasn't illuminated by the sun until
very late in the flight. In San Diego, I was able to see the exhaust flame as the vehicle was due
west, and sure enough, around 5 minutes after launch, I could see the plume -- for around a minute, until
staging.
I saw this from Escondido, CA. It was spectacular! We had perfect visibility with stars at the horizon. I saw the vehicle at 19:30:28. No contrail, but a terrific flame plume that reminded me of a blowtorch. It was only about 10 degrees above the horizon. I thought I might see it stage, but instead at 19:33:00 the vehicle made it into sunlight and the exhaust lit up! I lost it at about that time. Verrrry nice and many thanks for the heads up.
David D.
Escondido, CA
|
September 6, 2008
Time: 11:51 AM |
A Delta 2
launched GeoEye 1, a commercial imaging satellite, into orbit. (Delayed from 9/4/08 due to
personnel travel difficulties induced by Hurricane Hanna.)
|
June 20, 2008
Time: 0:46:25 AM |
A Delta 2
sent Jason 2, a scientific satellite designed to map
the height of the ocean, into orbit.
|
April 2, 2008
Time: 1:01 AM |
A Minuteman III
will make a readiness test flight, sent a dummy warhead into the central Pacific
at Kwajalein Atoll.
|
March 13, 2008
Time: 3:02 AM |
An Atlas 5
christened a brand new pad with its exhaust, as it launched a payload for the
National Reconnaissance Office.
|
December 8, 2007
Time: 6:31:37 PM |
A Delta 2
launched a commercial radar imaging payload (COSMO/SkyMed-2) into orbit during a 1-second-wide
window. Since
launch took place almost 2 hours after sunset, there was no "twilight effect" lighting.
(Rescheduled from December 5, 6, and 7.)
So far, I have one report of a sighting, from subscriber Leora, 160 miles north, in Monterey County.
|
September 18, 2007
Time: 11:35 AM |
A Delta 2
carried a commercial earth-imaging satellite (WorldView 1) to orbit.
|
June 7, 2007
Time: 7:34 PM
Delta climbing away from Vandenberg (2nd photo)
|
A Delta 2 placed an
Italian radar Earth-imaging satellite in orbit. Since the launch took
place 10-20 minutes before sunset, it was, sadly, invisible from San Diego.
Well after sunset, some whisps of wind-blown exhaust trail were visible,
glowing faintly above the fading twilight.
Attached are some shots of the Vandenberg rocket
launch carrying an Italian satellite in its payload.
The AIDS LifeCycle ride was camped at River Park in
Lompoc, and I picked up four people for dinner in
Lompoc. After dinner, we drove out Ocean Avenue to
catch the launch.
The first shot shows the rocket rising to the right of
the setting sun.
The second shows it rising (image at left). The third
shows it nearly overhead.
The fourth shows the group
pointing to the rocket with the contrail visible to
the right.
Anita
Lompoc, CA
|
April 25, 2007
Time: 1:26 PM |
A Pegasus winged booster was launched from Orbital Science Corp's modified L-1011 airliner,
successfully orbiting a NASA atmospheric research payload (Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere -- AIM).
|
March 20, 2007
Time: 9:27 PM |
A modified Minuteman II missile launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base
in to test radars associated with the National Missile Defense system. Because of the launch
time and prevailing weather on the California Coast, this flight was not viewable outside of
the immediate vicinity of VAFB.
|
February 7, 2007
Time: 12:14 AM |
Flight readiness launch of a Minuteman III. As usual, this
was a suborbital flight, tossing a dummy warhead into the Pacific Ocean, offshore from
the Kwajalein Atoll.
|
December 14, 2006
Time: 1:00 PM |
A Delta 2 sent a
classified payload into orbit for the National Reconnaissance Office.
|
November 4, 2006
Time: 5:53 AM |
A Delta 4 launched a weather satellite into polar orbit for the benefit o the Department of Defense.
Although the launch took place shortly before sunrise, which ought to have enhanced the visibility, few people were able
to observe the launch due to cloud cover.
Crystal clear conditions on the Central Coast allowed a spectacular
view from my home in Pismo Beach this morning. I can still see swirls
from the first stage contrail drifting eastward almost an hour after
launch. The most interesting part of the launch was shortly after
second stage separation when a tiny blue cloud formed at the point of
separation which quickly grew to a impressive sun lit bright blue
cloud about 5 degrees wide.
Todd Walker
Pismo Beach, CA
|
July 20, 2006
Time: 3:14 AM |
A Minuteman III ICBM was flight tested, tossing its inert payload
into the ocean near Kwajalein Atoll in the south central Pacific Ocean.
|
June 27, 2006
Time: 8:33 PM |
The first Delta 4 to fly from Vandenberg orbited a reconnaissance
payload. This vehicle launched with two strap-on solid rocket boosters. (This vehicle's launch was rescheduled
numerous times, for various reasons, including a problem with cork insulation, and a dispute over fuel slosh dynamics
during the coast to geosynchronous apogee.) The launch took place shortly after sunset, resulting in a light
show that was visible over much of the southwestern U.S.
In Pasadena, we hung around in the back yard waiting for the launch.
Gazed at a beautifully developing sunset while watching for the Delta.
Quite worth it--DeMille quality. It burned a golden trail up to about
20 degrees elev., then ran straight left from west to south. This was
one f-a-s-t moving machine. Saw nice plume at stage separation/burn.
Residual clouds were a bit understated.
Thanks,
Dave Cuatt
Pasadena, CA
|
June 14, 2006
Time: 1:22 AM |
A Minuteman III ICBM was flight tested, tossing its inert payload
into the ocean near Kwajalein Atoll in the south central Pacific Ocean.
|
April 28, 2006
Time: 3:02 AM |
A Delta 2 finally launched two NASA weather research payloads, CloudSat
and CALIPSO. (Rescheduled from April 21, then April 22, 23, 25, 26, 27,... -- okay, it only had a 1-second-long launch window)
|
April 14, 2006
Time: 6:40 PM |
A Minotaur booster (Minuteman 2 lower stage, Pegasus upper stage) launched several small
satellites to monitor climate change.
|
April 7, 2006
Time: 6:00 AM |
A Minuteman 3 missile was flight-tested, tossing an inert warhead into the ocean off Kwajalein Atoll,
in the South Pacific Ocean.
I had to be at work early today and was driving when
the launch happened. From Culver City the first stage
plume looked very large and bright white. Very easy to
spot. The sad thing was my brain hadn't started to
function yet--and I didn't know about the launch in
advance. So when I first saw it I thought that it was
maybe Venus with some costal fog hazing the
view---causing it to appear blurry and bloom very,
very wide.
By the time my brain reminded me that Venus could not
have been in that position. It was too late to see
anything...
Kent
Culver City, CA
|
March 22, 2006
Time: 6:03:45 AM |
A Pegasus was dropped from the
belly of Orbital Science's modified L-1011 airliner. This
business-jet-sized vehicle ignited its solid rocket engine,
and carried 3 small satellites for NASA.
|
February 16, 2006
Time: 12:01 AM |
A Minuteman 3 missile was flight-tested, sending an inert warhead into the ocean off Kwajalein Atoll,
in the South Pacific Ocean.
From Pasadena, a backyard skunk nearly cancelled viewing of a punctual
launch -- a warm yellow ball rising in the west moving to the left
(south), then seeming to pause before fading to black.
Skunk also launched, but missed.
Dave Cuatt
Pasadena, CA
Very nice launch! Saw it all the way to Orion's belt/M42 in the west.
Dave (Central Valley)
Crystal clear night as we watched the missile's flame create a
beautiful reflection across the ocean. The flame turned from bright
yellow to red as it crossed beneath Betelgeuse and across the chest of
Orion as it faded from view. Dead silence was replaced by a loud low
rumble that lasted for several minutes.
Todd and Jer
Pismo Heights, CA
|
October 19, 2005
Time: 11:05 AM |
The last Titan IV (in fact, the very last Titan) launched a classified National Reconnaissance
Office payload into orbit.
As expected, I was only able to observe the Titan 4 while the solid
rocket boosters were burning. A relatively faint exhaust trail appeared
from behind a building, and as I focused the binoculars on it, I could
see a faint flame at the top. As the vehicle climbed, the flame became
a little brighter (as the exhaust trail spread out due to the decreasing
air pressure). As soon as the SRBs separated (and they got surprisingly
bright after separation), there was nothing more to see of the core
vehicle. The SRB's flashed a few times (while tumbling), and then faded
away as they began their descent to a Pacific Ocean impact.
Goodbye Titan!
Russ Schnapp
San Diego, CA
Wow! This was one day I was actually glad to be a taxpayer! My love
and I parked at the North end of Union Sugar Road on the bank of the
Santa Ynez river next to an immense field of artichokes, just under
three miles from the launch pad. We could see the top 30 feet of the
mobile service tower and the nose cone of the rocket through a grove
of trees. The weather was perfect with only a few alto-nimbus clouds
floating by.
Liftoff occurs, the last of the Titans slowly lifts up past the trees
and comes into full view. Through binoculars we could see the
lettering on the rocket. The flame was so very very bright, it burned
an image in my retina that lasted for at least 20 minutes. The length
of the flame was 3 or 4 times the length of the rocket itself. It
only took a few seconds before the sound hit us. It started off as a
loud low roar building into a thunderous clapping earth-shaking
mind-blowing sound that will never be forgotten. The rocket turned to
the South and pointed its engines almost directly at our location.
You could actually feel the sound pressing against your skin and
jostling your internal organs. When booster separation occurred, we
could see both boosters tumbling down along with a mysterious 3rd
piece of hardware we didn't expect to see. Everything faded into the
sky except the wondrous contrail that looked like a 10 mile high
thunderhead. We could still hear the rumble and crackle of the
engines until 11:11, some 7 minutes after liftoff.
Inside tip for readers!: While we were driving back into Lompoc to
get fuel, we came across a film crew with the biggest camera I have
ever seen. There was tons of equipment including a generator to run
it all. I stopped and asked where we could view the footage. The
gentleman told me it's to be included in an upcoming pilot (working
title "Space") on the Fox Network to be aired sometime between Spring
and next Fall!
Todd Walker and Jer Jarvis
Pismo Beach, CA
The launch was visible (and quite audible) from here at Morro Bay in
mostly clear but somewhat hazy conditions. Because of the southerly
trajectory, we were watching the first stage main engine ignition, and
solid burnout, from almost directly behind. I was watching with a 25cm
astronomical telescope. It was a peculiar sight when the main (liquid
fueled) engines turned on and began to push the smoke away from behind
the vehicle -- suddenly we could see the flames from the solids much more
brightly than before. My wife, watching without a telescope, remarked
that it looked as if someone had turned on a sodium-vapor streetlight.
The solids did seem to keep burning long after separation. Their crazy
tumbling (still smoking as well) was amusing to watch. The main engines
were still visible for a while as white points of light, but it was much
more fun watching the solids zigzag around until they finally burned out
and disappeared into the haze. When the noise showed up, it was appropriately
impressive for one of the larger rockets launched from Vandenberg.
J.R.
s
Morro Bay, CA
|
September 22, 2005
Time: 7:24 PM - 7:40 PM
A series of beautiful photos by Fred Bruenjes
An excellent photo by Jim Tolley
|
A Minotaur (Minuteman II/Pegasus) orbited an Air Force test satellite in a spectacular twilight launch!
This was one of the best Vandenberg launches we've seen in years. If you've got photos to share, get
'em to me!
I used this launch as an excuse to leave my sweaty elliptical trainer early, and got home
just in time to drag my long-suffering wife out to the street in the off chance everything
would happen on time. Just when I thought we were out of luck, there she bloomed! A brilliant
white plume against the dark blue sky. In my binoculars, you could easily see the rapidly
expanding plume being emitted from the tiny pinpoint of the vehicle. It's absolutely amazing
how much of a visual display this tiny vehicle can produce! At least two distinct staging events
plainly visible from here. Afterwards, there was a little bit of color in the now-loopy
exhaust trail, but not much. Very satisfying!
Russ Schnapp
San Diego, CA
A bank of fog drifted in about 7PM and my heart sank. Walked back
into work next to LAX quite depressed. "We won't see this one guys," I
told my coworkers. At 7:22, I walked back out, just to see if I could
get a glimpse. Just then, the fog parted, revealing some blue sky.
Right on cue, the Minotaur roared brilliantly into view (no one out
with me to share in the excitement) and provided a spectacular show,
one of the best I've seen to date. I hope my son filmed it for
me...I'll find out later. Bring on Delta IV and the mighty Titan
IV!!!!
Steve Harte
Long Beach, CA
We were stunned by the light show of tonight's launch. Since we had
never seen one of these launches before, my family and I were excited
and puzzled by the brightly glowing exhaust trail. I heard a brief
mention on the radio that it was a launch from Vandenberg, so I was
able to find your website via Google. I took
these photos from indoors looking out our west-facing window here in
north San Diego County. The darker image of the rocket has some
window reflection and the lighter image was taken with a three second
exposure without any tripod (lots of hand jiggle). I retouched them
slightly to lighten/darken them. I hope we see another launch like
this again!
Todd Ewing
San Diego
We watched the launch from our deck in Pismo Heights 25 to 30 miles
North of the launch pad. Everybody knows how incredible the contrail
was from all the great pictures. The cool thing we noticed from up
close was when the first stage separation took place where we
witnessed roughly 50 or so pieces of bright burning metallic objects
floating down from the event similar to a fireworks explosion.
Todd and Jer
Pismo Beach, CA
|
September 14, 2005
Time: 1:01 AM |
Another Minuteman III test flight.
|
September 7, 2005
Time: 1:53 AM |
Another Minuteman III (suborbital) test flight. Sent a dummy warhead into the water off
Kwajalein Atoll, in the South Pacific Ocean.
I just thought I would write to say that I was here in the lab working
late (as usual) and was looking forward to seeing the launch tonight from
the roof of our lab, and take a time exposure. Unfortunately, I got
distracted, saw the time was 1:56am and thought, "shoot, I blew it ...oh
well, might as well go and look out of the window down the hall to see how
clear it is. Hey, what is Mars doing in the west?"...and moving! Ran to get
my binocs and got to watch the last minute or so of the ascent through the
window. Might have been a bit more interesting with a moon behind it, but I
did manage to see a big piece of some debris or something falling away for
a few seconds about 15 seconds before the main cut off.
John D
Pasadena, CA
|
August 25, 2005
Time: 1:01 AM? |
Another Minuteman III test flight.
|
July 21, 2005
Time: 1:01 AM |
A Minuteman III test flight.
|
May 20, 2005
Time: 3:22:01 - 3:32:01 AM |
A Delta 2 orbited a weather satellite for NOAA. (Rescheduled from May 11, 12 due to high winds; May 13 due to an electrical problem; May 14 due to concerns over payload contamination.)
|
April 15, 2005
Time: 10:21:49 - 10:28:49 AM |
A Pegasus XL was launched from Orbital Science's StarGazer (a converted
Lockheed L-1011), boosting a NASA autonomous rendezvous engineering test satellite (called DART) into orbit.
The launch came off on time, and DART was a partial success. It apparently approached the target satellite
to within 300 feet. Unfortunately, it shut down at that point, without completing the rendezvous.
|
April 11, 2005
Time: 6:34 AM to 7:00 AM |
A small solid rocket booster called a Minotaur launched a test satellite into orbit.
The satellite, XSS-11, was built by the Air Force Research Library. The Minotaur consists of Minuteman II
lower stages and Pegasus (sans wings) upper stages. The launch was not visible from San Diego, despite clear skies.
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