Seventeen: September 2005

 https://welib.org/md5/0ca027d5cc763181b6701d4d65a2ce70

USA-137

 1998-005A

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A 2500 kg classified NRO satellite, CAPRICORN, was launched by Atlas IIA AC-109 from Canaveral in Jan 1998, and placed in Molniya orbit. Aviation Week reported the prime contractor was Hughes. The unclassified name CAPRICORN was applied to the launch (rather than the payload) and was selected in a contest among children of NRO employees. Speculation is that CAPRICORN's payload was a follow on SDS comsat, built by Hughes, and also carried the COBRA BRASS payload.

The COBRA BRASS payload, with a multi-spectral electro-optical sensor, was designed to provide technology demonstrations for the GEO/HEO component of the advanced SBIRS early warning system. It was developed by Sandia/Albuquerque. COBRA BRASS probably also flew on the TRUMPET satellites.

The UN orbit of 191 x 795 km x 62.5 deg is probably the post-MECO1 parking orbit.

Optical observations showed that the satellite was of similar brightness to the earlier SDS-2 missions and different from USA 155 and its siblings.

CAPRICORN
Date	Time	Event	Orbit
1998 Jan 29	1837	Launch by Atlas IIA AC-109	CC LC36
		T+2:44 BECO
		T+2:47 Booster sep
		T+3:34 Fairing sep
		T+4:47 SECO
		T+4:49 Atlas sep
		T+5:05 Centaur MES1
	1847	T+10:13 MECO1	56 deg EPO
			94.1 191 x 795 x 62.5 (UN)
	1942	T+1:05:17 Centaur MES2
	1943	T+1:06:33 Centaur MECO2
	1947	T+1:10:16 S/C sep	12hr orbit, 63.4 deg

Kosmos 804

  1976-015A

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Kosmos-804 began the new series of tests with an attempt at a slow flyby of Kosmos-803, which reportedly failed although it did pass within a few km of the target. Reports suggested that it was deorbited over the Pacific.

Kosmos-804
Date	Time	Event	Orbit
1976 Feb 16	0829	Launch by 11K69	KB
	0831	Stage 2 burn
	0834?	Stage 2 MECO
1976 Feb 16	0845		93.1 149x703x65.2
1976 Feb 16	0935?	Maneuver	96.46 560 x 617 x 65.9
1976 Feb 16	1000		560x617 x 65.8
1976 Feb 16	1300		528x620 x 65.8
1976 Feb 16	1430	rv 3 km with K803
	1610	Maneuver away?
	1656	Pass over KB area
1976 Feb 16			228x928 x 67.6 (SFLT)
1976 Feb 16		deorbited	25? x 812? x 67.6

Tall Cool One

https://welib.org/md5/c146dc7d6d0fc613330d01d084e24e9c

Topex-Poseidon

 1992-052A

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NASA/JPL's Topex Ocean Topography Experiment was combined with the CNES Poseidon experiment on a Fairchild MMS satellite bus. The 2185 kg satellite carried 217 kg of fuel for a launch mass of 2402 kg. (www.tsgc.utexas.edu gives 2388 f 2169 em).

By early 1995, TOPEX/Poseidon measurements indicated a global sea level rise of 3 mm per year and provided data on global ocean tides, as well as studying the El Nino phenomenon. In Aug 1995 JPL reported that the spacecraft had completed its three year primary mission. In 2002, T/P manuevered to match the orbit of Jason.

Topex/Poseidon
Date	Time	Event	Orbit
1992 Aug 10	2308	Launch by Ariane
	2313	T+5:35 St 2 sep
	2325	T+17:37 H10 cutoff
	2327	H10 sep from Topex (T+19:29)
	2331	KITSAT, S80 sep from ASAP (T+23:36)
1992 Aug 12			112.12 1316 x 1331 x 66.1
1992 Aug 22			112.26 1328 x 1333 x 66.1
1992 Aug 27	1825	Plane change burn to 66 deg
1992 Sep 2		In-plane burn 2 due
1992 Sep 14		In-plane burn 3 due
1992 Sep 21	1943	Trim burn
1999 Feb		Primary altimeter off
1999 Mar		Side B altimeter on
2002 Aug 8			112.42 1331 x 1344 x 66.04
2002 Aug 15		Orbit adjust to match Jason-1
2002 Aug 19		Orbit adjust to match Jason-1
2002 Aug 23		Orbit adjust to match Jason-1
2002 Aug 29			112.44 1332 x 1345 x 66.04
2002 Nov 10			112.42 1331 x 1343 x 66.05

Payload:

• ALT NASA TOPEX Radar altimeter 13.6/5.3 GHz

• POSEIDON SSALT CNES radar altimeter 13.65 GHz Solid state altimeter

• TMR NASA TOPEX Microwave radiometer 18, 21, 38 GHZ, tropospheric H2O

Reality check : a For better or for worse collection

 https://welib.org/md5/4d4bba54c5f09454cbd597ec4c36e9b7

Panamsat 6

 1997-040A

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PAS 6 was launched by Ariane 4 in 1997 as an AOR satellite. The FS-1300 satellite has 36 Ku-band transponders. It will be used for DTH broadcasting to Latin America by the Sky Entertainment Services consortium. Panamsat/Greenwich,CT and Hughes Galaxy/LA merged 1997 May 16 to form a new Panamsat.

The launch vehicle was a dedicated AR44P with Fairing 01. Launch mass was 3420 kg, BOL 2050 kg, dry 1285 kg. Bus is 2.4 x 2.7 x 5.3m, with 27m span.

PAS 6
Date	Time	Event	Orbit
1997 Aug 8	0646	Launch by Ariane 4
	0647	T+1:10 PAP sep
	0649	T+3:32 St 1 sep
	0649	T+3:35 St 2 burn
	0650	T+4:37 Fairing 01 sep
	0651	T+5:43 St 2 sep
	0651	T+5:48 St 3 burn
	0704	T+18:45 St 3 cutoff
	0705	T+19:39 St 3 sep
	0705	T+19:43 St 3 avoidance
	0709	T+24:09 end of V98 mission
1997 Aug 8			630.90 174 x 35802 x 7.0
1997 Aug 9?		LAM-1
1997 Aug 11?		LAM-2
1997 Aug 11			1405.58 34582 x 35791 x 0.1 GEO 48.2W+7.8E
1997 Aug 14			1435.01 35741 x 35789 x 0.1 GEO 43.8W+0.2E
1997 Oct 23			1436.12 35779 x 35795 x 0.0 GEO 43.2W
1998 Jul 5			1436.13 35779 x 35795 x 0.0 GEO 43.2W
1999 Oct 15			1436.09 35783 x 35789 x 0.1 GEO 43.2W
2004 Feb 1			1436.13 35777 x 35797 x 0.0 GEO 43.2W

The Natural History of the Rich

https://welib.org/md5/6cd9e5bd2bca46dc10e854ee26dee80a

Kosmos 625

  1973-105A

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Kosmos-625 flew a topographic studies mission in Dec 1973.

Kosmos-625
Date	Time	Event	Orbit
1973 Dec 21	1230:00	Launch by 11A57	NIIP-53
	1234	Blok-I burn
	1238	Blok-I sep
			89.77 204 x 321 x 72.8 (RAE)
1973 Dec 21	2116		89.73 202 x 320 x 72.8
1973 Dec 22	1044		89.74 203 x 319 x 72.9
		Raise apogee
1973 Dec 23	1811		89.96 203 x 341 x 72.8
1973 Dec 25	0141		89.96 203 x 340 x 72.8
		Lower orbit
1973 Dec 27	0930		89.80 188 x 340 x 72.8 (RAE)
1973 Dec 27	1040		89.76 186 x 339 x 72.8
1973 Dec 29	1931		89.73 185 x 336 x 72.8
		Lower orbit
1973 Dec 30	1158		89.39 168 x 319 x 72.8
1973 Dec 31		Engine sep
1974 Jan 1	0113		89.32 167 x 314 x 72.8
1974 Jan 3	0645?	Retrofire
	0655?	PO sep
	0659?	Entry
	0714?	Landed after 12.78d

Falconsat 2

 2006-F01

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Ionospheric plasma depletion measurements; measure morphology of depletions relative to geomagnetic activity. Payload on first Falcon-1 launch.

The vehicle failed when an aluminium tube in the engine melted; the part was switched to stainless steel in later vehicles.

Launch from Omelek I. 167 44E 9 3N just north of Meck. 450 x 450 km x 39.0 deg.

20 kg. 0.32m cube, inactive attitude control.

Stage 1; 16m long 1.7d Stage 2: 1.7d long 2.7m long (5.6 with engine?) Overall 27.2t.

Operation by DARPA and USAF Academy.

Falconsat-2
Date	Time	Event	Orbit
2006 Mar 24	2230	Launch by Falcon 1	KMR Omelek
		T+0:25 Fire in engine
		T+0:29? Shutdown at 1 km
		T+0:41 Impact

Planned profile
Date	Time	Event	Orbit
		T+2:41 St 1 MECO, sep
		T+2:46 St 2 MES Vi 2.929 km/s 86.6 km
		T+3:06 118 km Fairing sep, 2.948 km/s
		T+9:31 St 2 MECO 400 km 7.696 km/s
		T+9:35 St 2 sep
		T+10m? St 2 retro
		T+16:10 Stage 1 impact, begin recovery op
		T+26:16 St 2 MES-2 restart test

Payload:

• Miniature Electrostatic Analyser (MESA) 10Hz

Arabsat 4A

 2006-006A

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EADS Astrium Eurostar 2000+ satellite; 4B to follow. Launch by ILS Proton 535-11/Briz M 88515 Comms payload by Alcatel. Also called BADR-ONE.

Briz-M failed in transfer orbit; MES-2 ended 3min10s early. Planned duration was 21 min. Since the satellite contract was for on-orbit delivery, the satellite was presumably owned by Astrium in orbit. After the failure, a European insurance group took ownership.

A4A
Date	Time	Event	Orbit
2006 Feb 28	2010:00	Launch by Proton
		T+2:03 St 1 sep
		T+5:32 St 2 sep
		T+5:43 GO sep
		T+9:34 St 3 MECO
	2019	T+9:46 St 3 sep
	2021	T+11:20 MES-1
	2024	T+14:45 Briz-M MECO-1	173 x 173
	2115:23	T+1:05:23 Briz-M MES-2
	2142:54	MECO-2 premature at 27:31
	2146s	T+1:36:14s MECO-2
	2150?	Arabsat sep
2006 Mar 1			505 x 14695 x 51.52
2006 Mar 10			503 x 14687 x 51.5
2006 Mar 23			492 x 14688 x 51.6