1965-008C
The first LES was a small 31 kg polyhedron launched on a Titan IIIA test flight. Three Transtage burns placed the payload in a 2800 km circular orbit; a separate solid injection motor was meant to raise its orbit to 2800 x 18400 x 32 deg, but the motor did not fire. Total mass of the payloads placed in orbit by the Transtage was 495 kg.
LES is 0.6m dia, 31 kg. Standard Star 13A is 38 kg. LES plus motor plus adapter was 158 kg leaving 89 kg for the adapter, which included a timer system and a spring assembly as well as a mounting system for the motor. Truss was 327 kg.
The satellite's transmitter resumed activity in 2013 after over 40 years of inactivity; it was picked up by radio amateur Phil Williams in Cornwall.
| LES 1 | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 Feb 11 | 1717 | Launch by Titan IIIA | CK |
| Stage 2 burn | |||
| Stage 2 MECO | |||
| Stage 2 sep | |||
| Transtage burn 1 | |||
| MECO-1 | 88.2 181 x 202 x 32 (MR) | ||
| Transtage burn 2 | |||
| MECO-2 | 200? x 2800? x 32 | ||
| Transtage burn 3 | 2774 x 2811 x 32.1 | ||
| MECO-3 +50s LES 1 sep from Transtage | |||
| Injection rocket fails to fire | |||
| MECO-3 +52s Ballast truss sep from Transtage | |||
| 1965 Feb 15? | Tumble terminated normal ops | ||
| 1965 Jun | Still functional | ||
| 1967 | End of operations? | ||
| 2013 | Signals picked up | ||
Payload:
- Solid state X band transmitter, 8 horn antennae
- Earth sensing/antenna switching system
- Magnetic orientation system
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