Saturday, December 27, 2003
Ekspress 1
1994-067A
The first Ekspress satellite was launched in 1994. Ekspress No. 11L was designated Ekspress-2 on orbit at 14W. The satellite failed in Jun 2001, interrupting Intersputnik services briefly until traffic was transferred to Ekspress-3A.
| Ekspress No. 11 | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 Oct 13 | 1619:00 | Launch by Proton | KB |
| 1628 | Stage 3 sep | ||
| 1628 | Adapter sep | 185? x 200? x 51.6 | |
| 1732? | DM burn 1 | ||
| DM MECO-1 | 200? x 36000? x 48.0? | ||
| 2250? | DM burn 2 | ||
| 2300? | DM sep | ||
| 1994 Oct 13 | 1440.78 35862 x 35893 x 0.2 GEO 91.1E+1.1W | ||
| 1994 Oct 24 | 1441.47 35863 x 35920 x 0.2 GEO 76.2E+1.3W | ||
| 1994 Nov 8 | 1435.87 35778 x 35785 x 0.2 GEO 70.7E+0.05E | ||
| 1994 Dec 28 | 1436.12 35781 x 35792 x 0.1 GEO 71.3E | ||
| 1995 Jan 4 | 1436.11 35779 x 35793 x 0.1 GEO 71.3E | ||
| 1995 Jan 5 | mv out | ||
| 1995 Feb 14 | mv in | 1436.04 35776 x 35794 x 0.1 GEO 14.0W | |
| 1995 Jun 14 | 1436.14 35773 x 35801 x 0.1 GEO 13.9W | ||
Kosmos 2290
1994-053A
Kosmos-2290 was deorbited in Apr 1995 over the Pacific, reentering approx 2720 km E of Wellington, NZ. According to Phillip Clark, mass of Kosmos-2290 was around 10600 kg.
The Yuzhnoe book implies the name Orlets.
At launch, the usual four high-orbit Zenit rocket separation motor covers were cataloged. In addtion, two small debris objects were found in the payload orbit, which may be sensor covers of some kind. The satellite was deorbited on 1995 Apr 4; two days earlier four objects were ejected.
Debris was found in Mexico, including parts from a 17D62 engine.
| Kosmos-2290 | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 Aug 26 | 1200:00 | Launch by Zenit-2 | KB |
| 1202:28 | Stage 1 sep | ||
| 1204:58 | Fairing sep | ||
| 1207:18 | Stage 2 MECO | ||
| 1210:28 | Stage 2 VECO | ||
| 1210:29 | Stage 2 sep | ||
| 1994 Aug 26 | 89.55 211 x 292 x 64.8 | ||
| 1994 Aug 30 | 89.50 210 x 288 x 64.8 | ||
| 1994 Sep 6 | 89.38 208 x 279 x 64.8 | ||
| 1994 Sep 6 | Orbit raise | 90.08 208 x 347 x 64.8 | |
| 1994 Sep 30 | 89.66 201 x 314 x 64.8 | ||
| 1994 Oct 1 | Orbit raise | 89.84 209 x 323 x 64.8 | |
| 1994 Oct 14 | 89.53 204 x 298 x 64.8 | ||
| 1994 Oct 14 | Orbit raise | 89.89 206 x 330 x 64.8 | |
| 1994 Oct 20 | 89.79 203 x 323 x 64.8 | ||
| 1994 Oct 20 | Orbit raise | 90.13 205 x 356 x 64.8 | |
| 1994 Oct 29 | 89.96 201 x 342 x 64.8 | ||
| 1994 Oct 29 | Orbit raise | 90.32 213 x 366 x 64.8 | |
| 1994 Nov 5 | 90.21 212 x 357 x 64.8 | ||
| 1994 Nov 10 | 90.12 210 x 350 x 64.8 | ||
| 1994 Nov 11 | Orbit raise | 90.28 209 x 366 x 64.8 | |
| 1994 Nov 15 | 90.22 209 x 361 x 64.8 | ||
| 1994 Dec 14 | 89.74 200 x 322 x 64.8 | ||
| Orbit raise | |||
| 1994 Dec 14 | 90.37 202 x 382 x 64.8 | ||
| 1994 Dec 28 | 90.13 200 x 361 x 64.8 | ||
| Orbit raise | |||
| 1994 Dec 28 | 90.63 200 x 410 x 64.8 | ||
| 1995 Jan 26 | 90.16 193 x 371 x 64.8 | ||
| 1995 Jan 26 | Orbit adjust | ||
| 1995 Jan 27 | 89.88 192 x 344 x 64.8 | ||
| 1995 Jan 30 | 89.79 190 x 337 x 64.8 | ||
| 1995 Jan 31 | Orbit raise | 90.34 191 x 391 x 64.8 | |
| 1995 Feb 7 | 89.96 177 x 367 x 64.8 | ||
| 1995 Feb 8 | Orbit raise | 90.35 181 x 401 x 64.8 | |
| 1995 Feb 12 | 89.19 179 x 387 x 64.8 | ||
| 1995 Feb 13 | Orbit raise | 90.33 181 x 399 x 64.8 | |
| 1995 Feb 22 | 89.97 178 x 367 x 64.8 | ||
| 1995 Feb 23 | Orbit raise | 90.72 180 x 439 x 64.8 | |
| 1995 Mar 5 | 90.31 177 x 401 x 64.8 | ||
| Orbit raise | 90.96 184 x 458 x 64.8 | ||
| 1995 Mar 15 | 90.65 183 x 429 x 64.8 | ||
| 1995 Mar 16 | Orbit lower | 90.39 182 x 404 x 64.8 | |
| 1995 Mar 27 | 90.00 179 x 370 x 64.8 | ||
| 1995 Mar 28 | Orbit raise | 82.14 181 x 576 x 64.80 | |
| 1995 Apr 2 | 53J,K,L,M ejected | ||
| 1995 Apr 3 | 91.93 180 x 557 x 64.80 | ||
| 1995 Apr 4 | 2355 | Deorbited over Pacific | |
| 1995 Apr 5 | 0155? | Entry over Mexico? | |
Friday, December 26, 2003
USA-82
1992-037A
The second Atlas II launch for DSCS III carried the B-12 satellite, named USA 82 on orbit. The IABS placed B-12 in the correct orbit, but the IABS IRU/gyro system had an electronics failure that precluded its use on-orbit, and the satellite operated using the standard DSCS system.
| DSCS III B-12 | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 Jul 2 | 2154 | Launch by Atlas II | CC LC36A |
| 2156 | Booster sep (T+2:49) | ||
| 2159 | Centaur MES1 (T+5:00) | ||
| 2205 | Centaur MECO1 (T+11:20) | ||
| 2218 | Centaur MES2 (T+24:00, burn 1:50) | ||
| 2220 | Centaur MECO2 | ||
| 2223 | Centaur sep (T+29:10) | 617.3 223 x 35053 x 26.5 (UN) | |
| 1992 Jul 4? | IABS burn | ||
| 1416.6 35289 x 35520 x 0.3, IABS (UN) | |||
| 1436.2 35775 x 35800 x 0.2 (UN) | |||
| 1995 Jul | ELANT Prime | GEO 12.0W | |
| 1997 Oct | ELANT Prime | GEO 12.0W | |
| 2002 Jun | Orbit raised | ||
| 2002 Jul 30 | Decommissioned | ||
Thursday, December 25, 2003
Westar 6 (Asiasat 1)
1984-011B / 1990-030A
The Westar 6 satellite was carried into orbit on the Space Shuttle Challenger in Feb 1984. Deployment from the cargo bay was normal, but when the PAM-D upper stage ignited the nozzle failed and the satellite was left in a low elliptical orbit. It was recovered by the 51-A mission. The underwriters, Merritt Syndicates, sold the satellite to Asiasat. Asiasat (the Asia Satellite Telecommunications Co. of Hong Kong) is a consortium of Cable & Wireless, Hutchinson Wampoa and the China International Trust and Investment Corp. (CITIC). Asiasat got Hughes to refurbish the satellite; it was then relaunched from China aboard a CZ-3 rocket, this time reaching GEO successfully. It was used for regional SE Asian communications.
| Westar 6 (Asiasat 1) | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 Feb 3 | 2059:23 | Westar 6 deploy from OV-099 | |
| 1984 Feb 3 | 2145 | PAM-D burn | |
| 1984 Feb 3 | PAM-D loss of control | ||
| 1984 Feb 3 | 2146? | PAM-D sep | 100.0 300 x 1214 x 27.7 |
| 1984 Feb 6 | 100.02 303 x 1215 x 27.7 | ||
| 1984 Feb 8 | 100.02 303 x 1215 x 27.7 | ||
| 1984 Feb 9 | 99.94 295 x 1215 x 27.7 | ||
| 1984 Feb 27 | 99.89 296 x 1210 x 27.7 | ||
| 1984 May 5 | 99.74 305 x 1186 x 27.7 | ||
| 1984 May 12 | 99.75 305 x 1187 x 27.7 | ||
| 1984 May 12 | mv up | 107.64 357 x 1192 x 27.9 | |
| 1984 May 12 | 1648 | AKM fired | 107.64 1070 x 1164 x 28.5 |
| 1984 Jul 19 | 107.64 1070 x 1165 x 28.5 | ||
| 1984 | Ownership to Merritt Syndicates | ||
| 1984 Aug 6 | mv | 106.11 1042 x 1050 x 28.5 | |
| 1984 Oct 9 | 106.11 1042 x 1050 x 28.5 | ||
| 1984 Oct 11 | lower orbit | 103.81 820 x 1056 x 28.5 | |
| 1984 Oct 12 | 100.34 490 x 1058 x 28.5 | ||
| 1984 Oct 13 | lower orbit | 99.06 370 x 1056 x 28.5 | |
| 1984 Oct 14 | 99.05 364 x 1061 x 28.5 | ||
| 1984 Oct 16 | 98.76 352 x 1046 x 28.5 | ||
| 1984 Oct 18 | 97.75 354 x 947 x 28.5 | ||
| 1984 Oct 19 | 96.96 355 x 867 x 28.5 | ||
| 1984 Oct 23 | 95.27 357 x 706 x 28.5 | ||
| 1984 Oct 27 | 92.73 352 x 463 x 28.5 | ||
| 1984 Oct 28 | 91.72 342 x 375 x 28.5 | ||
| 1984 Nov 2 | 91.91 361 x 375 x 28.5 | ||
| 1984 Nov 14 | 91.77 353 x 369 x 28.5 | ||
| 1984 Nov 14 | OV-103 rendezvous with Westar 6 | ||
| 1232 | MMU/Gardner dock Westar | ||
| RMS grapple Westar | |||
| MMU undock ACD | |||
| 1327? | MMU berthed | ||
| 1442 | Base adapter on | ||
| Westar berthed | |||
| 1984 Nov 16 | OV-103 landed | ||
| 1987 Jun 25 | Sold to Asiasat | ||
| 1990 Apr 7 | 1330:02 | Launch by CZ-3 | XSC |
| 1332:09 | Stage 1 sep, 50km | ||
| 1334:25 | Stage 2 sep | ||
| 1334:25 | Stage 3 MES1 | ||
| 1341:30 | T+11:28 Stage 3 MECO | ||
| 1345:32 | Stage 3 MES2 | ||
| 1351:29 | Stage 3 sep at perigee | ||
| 1990 Apr 9 | 0343? | Star 30C burn | |
| 1990 Apr 9 | 1438.01 34902 x 36745 x 0.3 GEO 130.3E+0.4W | ||
| 1990 Apr 14 | 1456.17 35797 x 36559 x 0.3 GEO 109.1E+4.9W | ||
| 1990 Apr 15 | On station | GEO 105.5E | |
| 1990 Apr 19 | 1436.10 35782 x 35790 x 0.2 GEO 105.6E | ||
| 1992 Mar 29 | 1436.16 35776 x 35799 x 0.1 GEO 105.5E | ||
| 1994 Feb 10 | 1436.11 35785 x 35788 x 0.0 GEO 105.5E | ||
| 1996 Mar 5 | 1436.06 35777 x 35794 x 0.0 GEO 105.6E | ||
| 1999 Jun 14 | 1436.15 35785 x 35789 x 0.2 GEO 105.6E | ||
| 1999 Jun 17 | mv out | ||
| 1999 Aug 14 | Move in to 122E | ||
| 2000 Jun 10 | 1436.10 35783 x 35790 x 1.0 GEO 122.1E | ||
| 2003 Jan 23 | 1436.28 35784 x 35796 x 3.2 GEO 121.4E | ||
Wednesday, December 24, 2003
USA-174
2003-057A
The contract for an extra UHF satellite was given in 1999. HS-601 launch by Atlas 3B/SEC AC-203. Launch mass 3041 kg.
| UHF F11 | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 Dec 18 | 0230 | Launch by Atlas 3 AC-203 | CC SLC36B |
| 0224:00 | Launch per Cleary report | ||
| T+3:00 BECO | |||
| T+3:07 Atlas sep | |||
| T+3:18 MES1 | |||
| 0233 | T+3:26 Fairing sep | ||
| T+4:40 | 172 km 3.933 km/s | ||
| 0244 | T+14:54 MECO-1 | 185 x 1092 x 28.1 | |
| 0254 | T+24:37 MES-2 | ||
| 0257 | T+27:42 MECO-2 | ||
| 0302 | T+32:25 Centaur sep | 288 x 35905 x 27.0 | |
| 2003 Dec 19? | LAM burn | ||
Gruzomaket
2003-055A
978 kg dummy Kondor-E satellite on Strela test launch. Refurbished UR-100NU. NPO-M (Mashinostroenie). The satellite is a box
KGCh-2 payload section; rocket is 29.2l 2.5d 100t (Strela can also have KGCh-1 normal warhead fairing). Third stage is APB-OIA: agregatno-priborniy blok, equipment-service stage, with extra 2.4m dia 0.8m long otsek ismeritel'noy apparaturi, instrumentation module. The Strela rocket has the designation 14A036 and the APB is 14S425.
Mark Wade's site suggested an APB mass of 1100 kg full 725 kg empty with an Isp of 200s. With a 1000 kg payload this gives a delta-V of 1961 ln ( 2100 / 1725 ) = 386 m/s implying a preburn orbit of around -770 x 460 km. A plausible range given uncertainties in mass and Isp is 350-450 m/s, giving (-950 to -650) x 460 km.
The Strela user manual gives details of an ascent to a 1000 km orbit; the stage 2 sep, pre-APB orbit is then -600 x 1000 km. The fairing jettison at 114 km is to a -5485 x 190 km orbit; the stage 1 seps to -5740 x 165 km at 70 km.
The RKN 14A036 Strela used the 15S300 booster, the 14S425 APB, and the payload was KGCh 14S135, consisting of the 14S620 OIA, the 14S134 fairing, and the mass model GVM30201-14S135.
| Gruzomaket | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 Dec 5 | 0600:00 | Launch by Strela | KB PL175/2 |
| 0602 | T+2:07 Stage 1 MECO | ||
| 0602 | T+2:07 Stage 2 burn 3:03 | ||
| 0602 | T+2:08 St 1 sep | ||
| T+2:59 Fairing sep at 114 km | |||
| 0604 | T+4:48 Stage 2 MECO | ||
| 0605 | T+5:06 Stage 2 VECO | ||
| 0605 | T+5:07 Stage 2 sep at 200 km | ||
| 0605 | T+5:07 OIA burn for attitude control | ||
| 0616 | T+16:27 OIA cutoff | ||
| 0616 | T+16:27 APB burn | ||
| 0619 | T+19:20 APB MECO | ||
| 0619 | T+19:52 APB sep | 93.74 452 x 461 x 67.08 | |
| 0620 | T+20:17 APB depletion | 93.04 389 x 457 x 67.08 | |
Tuesday, December 23, 2003
Monday, December 22, 2003
STS-83 (Columbia)
1997-013A
STS-83 was the MSL-1 (Microgravity Science Lab) Spacelab/EDO mission. An afternoon launch on April 4 followed a one-day technical delay; the count was held at the T-19 hour mark to add thermal insulation to a water coolant line. Columbia carried the Spacelab Long Module as well as the OARE acceleration monitor and a Hitchhiker-G experiment (CRYOFD) in the cargo bay. The middeck included a set of protein crystallography experiments.
Commander Jim Halsell was on his third flight, but his first as commander. Susan Still became the second woman to sit in the pilot's seat, while Janice Voss was payload commander with mission specialists Michael Gernhardt and Don Thomas. Thomas was lucky to be aboard - he broke an ankle during training, and Cady Coleman was named as a last-minute backup. A couple of weeks before launch, however, Thomas was cleared for flight and Coleman stood down. Two payload specialists completed the crew, both materials scientists. Roger Crouch was a long-time NASA scientist currently stationed at NASA Headquarters. He had been alternate PS for an earlier Spacelab mission. Gregory Linteris worked at the National Institute for Standards and Technology.
Problems with Fuel Cell 2 became apparent on Apr 5, and on Apr 6 after hours of discussion Mission Control declared a Minimum Duration Flight (MDF), with a return to Earth on Apr 8 instead of the originally planned Apr 19.
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 Mar 5 | Tow to VAB | ||
| 1997 Mar 11 | 1130 | Rollout to LC39A | |
| 1997 Apr 4 | 1920:32 | Launch | KSC LC39A |
| 1922:35 | SRB sep | ||
| 1929:04 | MECO | ||
| 1929:23 | ET sep | 88.22 69 x 303 x 28.46 | |
| 2000:27 | OMS 2 2:23 68m/s | 90.56 300 x 303 x 28.46 | |
| 2002:50 | OMS 2 CO | ||
| 2109 | PLBD open complete | ||
| 2120? | Fuel cell problem | ||
| 1997 Apr 5 | 90.55 299 x 303 x 28.47 | ||
| 1997 Apr 6 | 1930 | Fuel Cell 2 shut down | |
| MDF declared | |||
| 1997 Apr 7 | 90.53 298 x 303 x 28.47 | ||
| 1997 Apr 8 | 1455 | PLBD closed | 90.52 297 x 301 x 28.47 |
| 1731:18 | OMS DO 3:22 99.0m/s | -34 x 301 x 28.5 | |
| 1734:40 | OMS DO CO | ||
| 1801 | Entry interface | ||
| 1833:11 | MGTD KSC RW33, 3:23:12:39 | ||
| 1833:23 | NGTD | ||
| 1834:10 | Wheels stop | ||
Sunday, December 21, 2003
Apollo 8
1968-118A
- Commander: Frank Borman, Col. USAF
- Senior Pilot: James Lovell Jr., Capt. USN
- Pilot: William Anders, Maj. USAF
Apollo 8 Crew
Apollo CSM 103 was launched on the AS-503 mission (Apollo 8) at 1251 on 1968 Dec 21. Apollo 8 was a historic mission - for the first time human beings would leave Earth's gravitational sphere of influence and head for the Moon. Apollo 8 entered a 179 x 190 km x 32.6 deg Earth parking orbit at 1302, and at 1541 the S-IVB stage reignited for translunar injection - TLI. The Apollo separated from the Saturn, turned around for practice at stationkeeping, and then moved away to begin its cruise to the Moon.
At 2029 on 1968 Dec 23, Borman, Lovell and Anders passed through the point at which the Moon's gravity became greater than the Earth's. At 1003 on Dec 24 they fired up the SPS engine to enter an elliptical orbit around the Moon. The orbit apogee was lowered to circularize the path at 1426.
The Apollo 8 spaceship spent a day in lunar orbit, taking the famous `Earthrise' photo of the Earth rising above the lunar horizon.
CSM 103 began its flight back to the Earth at 0610 on 1968 Dec 25, the SPS engine boosting it out of lunar orbit. At 1519 on Dec 27 the Service Module was jettisoned to burn up in the Earth's atmosphere. The CM began reentry at 1537, at 122 km altitude, making the first piloted `skip reentry'. CM-103 descended to 55 km and then rose again to 64 km before descending toward the Pacific. It would fly a range of 2500 km from entry to splashdown. The Command Module touched down in the Pacific at 1551 on 1968 Dec 27.
| Apollo CSM 103 Mission Log | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1251:00 | Launch of SA-503 | |
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1253:06 | S-IC center engine cutoff | |
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1253:33 | S-IC outboard engines cutoff | |
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1253:34 | S-IC-503 separation, altitude 80.5 km | |
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1254:08 | LES separation | |
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1259:44 | S-II-3 separation | -2286 x 192 x 32.66 |
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1259:45 | S-IVB burn ignition | |
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1302:25 | S-IVB main engine cutoff | |
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1302:35 | Earth orbit insertion, | 179 x 190 km x 32.6 deg |
| 1333:05 | Optics cover jettison | ||
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1541:38 | S-IVB TLI burn | |
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1546:55 | S-IVB main engine cutoff | |
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1547:05 | Translunar injection | 214 x 544356 x 30.71 |
| C3 = -1.479 | 218 x 545303 x 31.07 | ||
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1611:59 | S-IVB-503 separation | 141 x 538222 x 30.71 |
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1613 | Stationkeeping exercise | |
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1631:01 | Sep (RCS) | |
| 1968 Dec 21 | 1736:01 | Sep-2 (RCS) 2.3m/s | |
| 1968 Dec 21 | 2351 | MCC-1 (SPS mid course correction) | 308 x 535599 x 30.6 |
| 1968 Dec 23 | 2029 | Equigravisphere | |
| 1968 Dec 24 | 0150:55 | MCC-4 (RCS mid course correction) | |
| 1968 Dec 24 | 0959:02 | Begin LOI-1 | 122 x -11021 x 145.49 |
| 1003:27 | LOI-1 (SPS lunar orbit insertion, 4:06) | 110 x 293 x 151.2 | |
| 1968 Dec 24 | 1007:34 | Lunar orbit insertion, | 112 x 313 km x 168 deg |
| 1968 Dec 24 | 1426:07 | LOI-2 (SPS burn, 10s) | 109 x 305 x 156.8 (MR) |
| 1426:17 | LOI-2 CO | 112 x 113 km x 168 deg | |
| 1968 Dec 25 | 0610:16 | TEI (SPS 3min23s burn) | 105 x 115 x 150 |
| 1968 Dec 25 | 0613:39 | Transearth Injection | 110 x -8518 x 153.7 |
| Return to Earth gravity sphere | |||
| 1968 Dec 25 | 2050:54 | MCC-5 (midcourse correction) | -585 x 982887 x 37.7 |
| 1968 Dec 27 | 1519:48 | SM-108 separation | |
| 1968 Dec 27 | 1537:12 | Entry interface 11.040km/s at -6.50deg | 38 x 1038993 x 37.2 |
| 1968 Dec 27 | 1551:42 | Splashdown, 08 08 N, 165 W, Pacific Ocean | |
| 1968 Dec 27 | 1645 | Recovery by USS Yorktown | |
Transit 4A
1961-015A
The Transit IVA satellite tested out the SNAP 3A radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG), a nuclear power supply. The spacecraft bus was a new cylindrical design and used magnetic rather than yo-yo despin. The SR and Injun satellites separated from Transit.
The Ablestar rocket exploded when residual propellants ignited.
Gatland (1961) reports a launch time of 1623 UTC (1223 EDT), 12 hours off from the value I have.
| Transit IVA | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 Jun 29 | 0423 | Launch by Thor Ablestar | CC LC17 |
| 0425 | Thor sep | ||
| 0426? | Ablestar burn 1 | ||
| Ablestar MECO | 150? x 1000? x 66 | ||
| Ablestar burn 2 | |||
| 0451 | Ablestar MECO-2 | ||
| Ablestar sep | |||
| SR/Injun sep | |||
| 881 x 998 x 66.81 | |||
| 0608:10 | Ablestar exploded | ||
| 1961 Jul 15 | Solar cell experiment end of ops | ||
| 1970 May | Beacon still transmitting | ||
| 1974? | End of transmissions? | ||
Payload:
- Beacons C 54/324 MHz Z 150/400 MHz
- SNAP 3A RTG
- Solar cell test panel
Saturday, December 20, 2003
Nozomi
1998-041A
THe ISAS Planet B mission will study the Martian atmosphere and its interaction with the solar wind. It will have a periapsis of 150 km. Mass is 540 kg. Fuel is 278 kg. Craft has 4 25-m wire antennae giving 50m span, were to be deployed at Mars; this did not happen because of the failures.
Launch Jul 4 1998, lunar swingby, Mars MOI Oct 1999. Planet B is built by NEC Corp. Planet B's NMS instrument is a modernized version of the one flown on Pioneer Venus.
Named Nozomi (`Desire' or `Hope') after launch. Nozomi made six elliptical orbits from Jul to its first lunar flyby in 1998 Sep. It then arced out to 1.7 Mkm around Nov 10 and fell back to a second lunar swingby in December, followed two days later by an Earth pass for solar orbit injection. The perigee burn didn't provide enough thrust, so the Oct 1999 MOI was delayed to Dec 2003.
A double Earth swingby in Dec 2002 and Jun 2003 has been discussed.
In Apr 2002 solar flares damaged the spacecraft's communication systems and the heaters for the RCS system. The hydrazine froze but warmed up as Nozomi got closer to the Sun. In the absence of telemetry, ISAS used a capability to switch the radio beacon on and off to confirm that commands were being received correctly during the Dec 2002 swingby.
On 2003 Dec 1, Nozomi was on a 894 km x Inf Mars hyperbolic trajectory with periapsis on Dec 14.
Stage 3 burn: M34 mass 11600 900 Isp 301 burn 102 thrust 294 Ve 2952 Mdot is T/Ve = 99.6 kg/s so for 102s have 10160 kg. m1/m2 = 11600+P/900+P, P = 1864 so 13464 / 2764 dV = 4674m/s
Stage 4 burn: KM-V mass 1324 124 + 540. m1/m2 = 1864/664 Ve = 2942 dV = 3036 m/s
| Planet B | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 Jul 3 | 1812 | Launch by M-V-3 | KASC |
| Stage 1 burn | |||
| T+1:15 Stage 1 sep | |||
| T+1:15 Stage 2 burn | |||
| T+3:33 St 2 sep? | |||
| T+3:38 Stage 3 burn | |||
| 1817 | T+5:23 Stage 3 burnout | ||
| 161 x 422 x 31.10 (ISAS p319) | |||
| 146 x 417 x 31.7 | |||
| T+19:59 Spin motor ig | ||
| 1832 | T+20:24s? Stage 3 sep | ||
| 1832 | T+20:11s KM burn Isp 300s | ||
| 1833 | T+21:22s KM burnout dV= 3.160km/s | ||
| 1835 | T+23:19? KM-V1 sep | ||
| 359 x 401491 x 28.6 | |||
| 1998 Jul 4 | 0933 | Pass EL1:4 | |
| 1998 Sep 24 | Lunar flyby 1, 4000 km | ||
| 1998 Nov 10? | Apogee | ? x 1.7 Mkm | |
| 1998 Dec 18 | 0734 | Lunar flyby 2 C/A = 4547 km | |
| 1998 Dec 20 | 0809:54 | Perigee C/A=7381 km, 7min TMI burn, underspeed | |
| Earth escape | |||
| 1998 Dec 20 | 2301 | Correction burn 1 | |
| 1998 Dec 20 | 2339 | Correction burn 2 | |
| 1999 Jan | 146 x 216 Mkm x 3.0 485d | ||
| 1999 Jan | 0.978 x 1.446 AU x 2.9 deg 487d | ||
| 1999 Mar 1 | DV10 TCM | ||
| 1999 May 2 | Small gas leak | ||
| 1999 Jul 5 | S-band downlink problem | ||
| 1999 Aug 28 | Mars C/A 5.5Mkm | ||
| 2000 Jun 22 | DV11 TCM | ||
| 2002 Apr 26 | Loss of contact due to solar flare damage | ||
| 2002 Apr 28 | DV12 TCM aborted | ||
| 2002 Jul 14 | Recovered beacon | ||
| 2002 Sep 2 | reorientation | ||
| 2002 Sep 10 | 0737? | DV13 TCM | |
| 2002 Oct 5 | DV14 TCM | ||
| 2002 Nov 22 | DV15 TCM | ||
| 2002 Dec 21 | 0737 | Earth pass 30000 km | |
| 2003 Jan | 0.832 x 1.167 AU x 6.2 deg 365d | ||
| 2003 Jun 19 | 1444 | Earth pass 15872 km (22250 km C/A) | |
| 2003 Jul | 1.013 x 1.508 AU x 7.7 deg 517d | ||
| 2003 Jul 8 | Loss of beacon | ||
| 2003 Dec 9 | TCM attempt failed | ||
| 2003 Dec 9 | 1618 | Enter Mars sphere | |
| 2003 Dec 9 | RCS burn to tweak flyby distance | ||
| 2003 Dec 13 | 1819 | Flyby Mars at 1000 km | |
| 2003 Dec 17 | 2200? | Leave Mars gravity | |
| 2003 Dec 19 | End of mission | ||
Payload:
- Energetic electron detector
- Energetic ion detector
- High energy particle detector
- Electron temperature probe
- Fluxgate magnetometer, 5m mast
- UV spectrometer
- EUV spectrometer
- HF plasma wave detector/sounder
- LF plasma wave detector
- CCD Cameras
- WANT Wire Antennae,4: 25m each
- TPA Thermal Plasma Analyser, CSA
- NMS Neutral Mass spectrometer, NASA GSFC
Iridium 88
1998-074A
Iridium 88 was launched on 1998 Dec 19 at 1130 UTC from Taiyuan. It was assigned the operation number 20. The satellite was kept in an intermediate orbit until Apr 1999 when it moved to the operational constellation.
| Iridium 88 | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 Dec 19 | 1139:44 | Launch by CZ-2C/SD | |
| T+2:02 Stage 1 MECO | |||
| T+2:03 Stage 1 sep, Stage 2 burn | |||
| T+3:50 Fairing | |||
| T+5:02 Stage 2 MECO | |||
| 1149:55 | T+10:11 Stage 2 VECO | ||
| 1149:58 | T+10:14 Stage 2 sep | 92.89 177 x 655 x 86.37 | |
| 1227:52 | T+48:08 SD burn | ||
| 1228:28 | T+48:44 SD burnout | 97.50 622 x 655 x 86.4 | |
| 1229:47 | T+50:03 SD sep | ||
| 1233:38 | T+53:54 SD deorbit burn | 92.94 212 x 624 x 86.33 | |
| 1998 Dec 26 | 97.55 625 x 657 x 86.4 | ||
| 1999 Jan 1 | 97.60 627 x 659 x 86.4 | ||
| 1999 Jan 7 | 98.78 687 x 713 x 86.5 | ||
| 1999 Apr 1 | 98.78 686 x 714 x 86.5 | ||
| 1999 Apr 5 | 99.37 722 x 734 x 86.5 | ||
| 1999 Apr 10 | 100.40 776 x 778 x 86.4 | ||
Friday, December 19, 2003
Monday, December 15, 2003
Wednesday, December 10, 2003
USA-95
1993-056A
The second UFO (UHF Followon) satellite was successfully launched into geostationary orbit and delivered to US Naval Space Command from Hughes Communications Inc.
The satellite had a mass of 1279 kg in GEO, 2840 kg in GTO.
In early 2002 it was reactivated from on-orbit spare status to provide extra capacity to forces in Afghanistan.
| UHF F/O F2 | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 Sep 3 | 1117 | Launch by Atlas 1 | CC LC36B |
| 1993 Sep 3 | Atlas sep | ||
| 1993 Sep 3 | 1121 | Centaur MES1 (T+4:45) | |
| 1993 Sep 3 | 1127 | Centaur MECO1 (T+10:15) | |
| 1993 Sep 3 | 1141 | Centaur MES2 (1:14) | |
| 1993 Sep 3 | 1142 | Centaur MECO2 | 222 x 16394 |
| 1145? | Centaur sep | ||
| 273.91 224 x 14961 x 27.1 | |||
| 1993 Sep 6 | P-1 | 321.96 314 x 18050 x 26.8 | |
| 1993 Sep 7 | P-2 | 388.73 293 x 22237 x 26.9 | |
| 1993 Sep 8 | P-3 | 489.06 287 x 28080 x 26.8 | |
| 1993 Sep 9 | P-4 | 648.18 296 x 36566 x 26.6 | |
| 1993 Sep 10 | LAM-1 | 834.15 9392 x 36557 x 13.0 | |
| 1993 Sep 11 | LAM-2 | 1126.50 22573 x 36396 x 9.6 | |
| 1993 Sep 11 | 2300? | LAM-3 | |
| 1993 Sep 14 | 1435.36 34969 x 36574 x 5.1 | ||
| 1993 Sep 20 | 1436.55 35130 x 36460 x 5.1 GEO 173.1W+0.12W | ||
| 1993 Sep 26 | 1436.40 35139 x 36445 x 5.1 GEO 173.6W+0.1W | ||
| 1993 Oct 19 | 1436.03 35136 x 36434 x 5.1 GEO 173.3W+0.02 | ||
| 1993 Nov 1 | mv out | ||
| 1993 Nov 16 | 1452.48 35790 x 36422 x 5.1 | ||
| 1993 Dec 7 | Delivered to USN Space Command | ||
| 1993 Dec 18 | mv in | 1436.07 35772 x 35800 x 5.0 GEO 71.5E | |
| 1994 Feb 1 | 1436.02 35773 x 35797 x 5.0 GEO 72.1E | ||
| 1994 Sep 12 | 1436.02 35762 x 35807 x 4.8 GEO 71.9E | ||
| 1995 Aug 19 | 1436.03 35771 x 35799 x 4.4 GEO 71.7E | ||
| 1997 Mar 6 | 1436.05 35765 x 35806 x 3.9 GEO 72.6E | ||
| 1999 Jul 27 | 1436.03 35164 x 36406 x 2.8 GEO 71.8E | ||
Friday, December 5, 2003
Kosmos 576
1973-044A
Zenit-4MT flight 4 was a 12 day mission in Jun 1973. It carried a capsule with a micrometeorite detector and the Kettering group detected the TL recovery beacon.
| Kosmos-576 | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 Jun 27 | 1150:01 | Launch by 11A511M | PL |
| 1154 | Blok-I burn | ||
| 1158 | Blok-I sep | ||
| 1308 | 89.85 205 x 328 x 72.9 | ||
| 1973 Jun 28 | 1430 | 89.88 204 x 332 x 72.8 | |
| 1973 Jul 1 | 0530 | 89.81 202 x 326 x 72.9 | |
| 1973 Jul 9 | Capsule sep | 91.42 212 x 478 x 72.9 | |
| 1973 Jul 9 | 0335 | 89.72 201 x 319 x 72.9 | |
| 1973 Jul 9 | 0628? | Retrofire | |
| 0638? | PO sep | ||
| 0644? | Entry | ||
| 0700? | Landed after 11.79d | ||