NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS)-K has been scheduled for launch in the fall of 2012 after the Agency Project Management Council (APMC) approved the third generation upgrade of the orbiting communications network.

The APMC approval means that the project will enter Phase D which includes spacecraft integration and testing, mounting of spacecraft reflectors and installation of thermal panels and batteries. It is also in this phase that the spacecraft will be tested for vibration and acoustics, and must pass the pre-ship review before it is transported to Florida for launch.

"I am very proud of the entire TDRS civil servant and contractor team for successfully completing this milestone and demonstrating that the TDRS project is ready to proceed into the integration phase," said Jeff Gramling, TDRS Project Manager in a statement. "I am excited to see the TDRS-K satellite enter the thermal vacuum chamber and begin environmental testing." Testing will occur within the Boeing Space Systems Facility in El Segundo, California.

Last August before the APMC approval, the project completed a combined Pre-Environment Review (PER) and Systems Integration Review (SIR), which is a significant milestone in the NASA mission lifecycle.

The next is the environmental test phase, where the various segments and subsystems will be tested for their viability under the same harsh conditions they will endure within the vacuum of space.

"Successful completion of the environmental testing phase of the project will be the last step before we ship the TDRS-K spacecraft to the launch site," said Dave Littmann, TDRS Deputy Project Manager. "Through a rigorous testing program, we will ensure this satellite, once on-orbit, is capable of meeting its functional and performance requirements, to provide reliable services to the customers of NASA's Space Network."

NASA said the TDRS-K, which is part of a follow-on spacecraft fleet being developed and deployed to replenish NASA's Space Network, will be launched aboard an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida.