Tacsat 4

 2011-052A

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Prototype standardized satellite platform with 10-channel UHF telecom payload for data relay, friendly forces tracking and mobile comms using handheld radios.

Box-cone + 2 panels + 3.7m dish

Mass 460 kg.

4-hour elliptical orbit, 8000 km apogee. Minotaur IV launch with 92-inch fairing and Star 48 motor. Led by USN/NRL with ONR funding. Spacecraft bus was built by APL and NRL.

Star 48V mass 2164 kg full 138 kg empty. Assume extra 500 kg stage hardware as a fiducial value. Isp 292.1 over 84.1s with 460 kg s/c: dV = ln 3124 / 1098 * 9.807 * 292.1 = 2994 m/s

Tacsat 4
Date	Time	Event	Orbit
2011 Sep 27	1549	Launch by Minotaur 4/Star 48	KLC
		T+00:57 Stage 1 sep
		T+1:55 Stage 2 burnout
		T+2:05 St 2 sep, St 3 burn
		T+2:17 Fairing sep
	1552	T+3:18 SR120 St 3 burnout
	1611	T+22:55 Stage 3 sep	-3380? x 1000? x 64
	1612	T+23:06 Star 48 burn
	1613	T+24:28 Star 48 burnout	189 x 11833 x 63.4
	1616	T+27:48 Star 48 sep
	1837?	Perigee raise burn	230.98 340 x 11843 x 63.5
	2220?	Perigee raise	234.44 597 x 11835 x 63.6
2011 Sep 28	0930?	Perigee raise	235.15 647 x 11836 x 63.6

Payload:

• COTM Comms on the Move (COMMx), with UHF legacy and MUOS capability.

• BFT Blue Force Tracking, UHF relay

• SCP SCP-3 Satellite Comms Payload, Data-X Data exfiltration experiment (ONR/Praxis/), IP based USN buoy comms with ODTML Ocean Data Telemetry Microsat Link (ONR/)