Northrop's satellite refueling spacecraft launches on October 9th

Northrop's satellite refueling spacecraft launches on October 9th

This a BIG news!

The ability to refuel satellites in space is a game changer in many ways.

Not only does it give satellites a longer "space life", it also allows for satellites to be moved - frequently if need be - without worry about the bird running out of fuel prematurely.

I guarantee the people of the NRO (National Reconnaissance Office) are cheering about this announcement for many reasons.

Next steps are to give other spacecraft the ability to refuel after having used much of their fuel just to reach orbit.

Once that happens, it completely changes the calculus on planned future missions as it allows for the mission planners to not be as fuel-dependent or fuel focused as they are today.

This is big!

Must have been planned for a long time... I still have not figured out how the fuel transfer will work.... But I do agree it is a game changer.

A space tanker.

The inaugural MEV-1 will dock with an Intelsat satellite in three months' time and provide life-extending services over five years. After that, it should be free to help other satellites -- it'll still have 10 years' worth of fuel.

A second spacecraft, MEV-2, will help another Intelsat satellite in 2020 and should have the same amount of leftover fuel. Both MEVs are flexible, too. They can dock with 80 percent of current geostationary satellites, even if they weren't designed for servicing.

originally posted by: 727Sky
I still have not figured out how the fuel transfer will work....

It doesn't. The MEV docks with the satellite and functions as a space tug.

This is their most recent concept for this i think:
www.youtube.com...

a reply to: mightmight

So a space tug instead. Still cool.

You'd think there would be some kind of technology already developed where you could just shoot a beam of energy at a satellite and power it up that way.

Our initial servicing vehicle, the Mission Extension Vehicle (MEV)™ docks with customers’ existing satellites providing the propulsion and attitude control needed to extend their lives. We have now introduced our next generation system, Mission Extension Pods (MEPs)™, which is a smaller and less expensive life extension service that only performs orbit control. The MEPs are installed by a robotic servicing vehicle called the Mission Robotic Vehicle (MRV)™ which can perform all the functions of an MEV while adding new robotic capabilities for additional services.

Link

The future version will attach a pod so it is in a since what might be referred to as refueling but in a roundabout way.

originally posted by: underwerks
You'd think there would be some kind of technology already developed where you could just shoot a beam of energy at a satellite and power it up that way.

If the spacecraft uses light sails as a means of propulsion, I bet you could shoot a high powered laser at the light sails and get it started that way. Lasers don't diffuse too much so it should still have most of its "power" even at 22,300 miles above the earth.

I think. If that's incorrect, someone more knowledgeable than me will hopefully point it out...