Saturday, January 28, 2017
Wednesday, January 25, 2017
XPNAV-1
2016-066A
CAST science satellite. Test of X-ray pulsar navigation using 26 nearby XR ms pulsars. PI is Shuai Ping of the China Satellite Navigation System Management Office. Developed by Shenzhen DFH.
| LS1 | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 Nov 9 | 2342 | Launch by CZ-11 | Jiuquan |
| 2344? | Stage 1 sep | ||
| 2346? | Stage 2 sep | ||
| 2350? | Stage 3 burn | ||
| 2351? | Stage 3 burnout | ||
| 2352? | Stage 3 sep | ||
| 2016 Nov 10 | 94.66 492 x 511 x 97.4 (B) | ||
| 2016 Nov 11 | 94.68 493 x 512 x 97.4 (A) | ||
Monday, January 23, 2017
Sunday, January 22, 2017
Insat 3A
2003-013A
Inast-3A was built by ISRO/Bangalore and launched in 2003 by Ariane 5, to be stationed at 93.5E. Mass 2958 kg launch 1350 kg dry, size 2.8 x 1.7 x 2.0 m with 24.4 m span, box + 1 panel + boom. Of 1603 kg prop, 505 kg left after LAM-3. During launch, Insat 3A is on top of a Sylda 5C and under a Medium fairing 5.8m high 4.6m dia.
| Insat 3A | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 Apr 9 | 2252:19 | T+0:07 Launch by Ariane 5G | CSG ELA3 |
| T+2:21 EAP sep | |||
| T+3:10 Fairing sep | |||
| 2301 | T+9:56 EPC MECO | ||
| 2302 | T+10:02 EPC sep | -41 x 1561 x 6.0 | |
| 2302:28 | T+10:09 EPS burn | ||
| 2319 | T+27:12 EPS MECO | ||
| 2319 | T+27:22 Insat 3A sep | ||
| 2324 | T+32:48 Sylda 5 sep | ||
| 2330 | T+38:43 Galaxy 12 sep | ||
| T+55:02 EPS depletion complete | |||
| 2340 | EPC apogee 1561 km | ||
| 2003 Apr 10 | 0023? | EPC entry | |
| 2003 Apr 10 | 642.81 861 x 35726 x 2.0 | ||
| 2003 Apr 11 | 1145 | LAM-1 | |
| 2003 Apr 11 | 0300 | 864.01 11483 x 35859 x 1.0 | |
| 2003 Apr 12 | 0630 | LAM-2 | 32750 x 36000 x 0.1 |
| 2003 Apr 14 | 0409 | LAM-3 | |
| 2003 Apr 15 | Deploy solar arrays and antennas | ||
| 2003 Apr 16 | Deploy N solar sail/boom | ||
| In 3-axis mode | |||
| 2003 Apr 17 | CCD camera on | ||
| 2003 Apr 18 | VHR on | ||
| 2003 Apr 18 | 1432.13 35565 x 35851 x 0.0 | ||
| 2003 May 13 | 1436.14 35772 x 35802 x 0.1 GEO 93.5E | ||
| 2004 Feb 14 | 1436.15 35773 x 35801 x 0.0 GEO 93.5E | ||
| 2006 Aug 8 | 1436.14 35776 x 35798 x 0.0 GEO 93.5E | ||
| 2016 Nov 12 | 1436.11 35773 x 35800 x 0.0 GEO 93.6E | ||
Monday, January 16, 2017
NFIRE
2007-014A
Near Field IR Experiment, General Dynamics (former Spectrum Astro) built payload for MDA. Missile/plume discrimination experiment.
Launch by Minotaur from WI LA0B in 2006.
Will observe one missile at 20 km flyby, and one at 3.7 km flyby.
494 kg
495 x 495 x 49
Hi Pete, Here's what I know.
- The use of LF06 is new info from you, as is the nomenclature Mission 2A/2B. - According to unclassified SpaceTrack data, NFIRE has NEVER been in a 450 nm orbit, it has been at 264 nm (490 km) since shortly after launch. Perhaps you meant 'lowered from 264 nm to 250 nm' ? ) There was no manuever up to Aug 2, but maybe the orbit has been adjusted between Aug 2 and Aug 5. - The management stuff and the planned use of Minotaur II targets is widely available on the Web. The material on the web mentions the 4 and 20 km values but mostly misinterprets it as being a plan to specifically have mission 2A do 20 km and mission 2B do 4 km. - I don't have any quantitative info on the wavelengths of the NFIRE sensors; I assume that "long wavelength IR" is around 10 microns or so (as opposed to the 100 microns it would mean for astronomers!)
The NFIRE (Near Field IR Experiment) satellite was launched on Apr 24 by a Minotaur I from Launch Area 0B at Wallops Island. The Missile Defense Agency satellite was built by General Dynamics' Gilbert, Arizona (former Spectrum Astro) unit based on its SA-200 bus and is managed by the USAF Missile Defense Space Systems Office (SMC/SS) at Los Angeles Air Force Base, which is also responsible for the STSS space tracking satellite program. NFIRE was launched into a 255 x 465 km x 48.2 deg orbit; from May 3 to May 18 the orbit was raised to 489 x 497 km and it remained in that orbit on Aug 2. NFIRE carries a German laser communications terminal, Tesat, as a secondary payload, but its main instrument is TSP, the Track Sensor Payload, which includes visible and short, medium and long wave infrared sensors to track missiles and their rocket plumes, and is designed to distinguish between the missile and its plume. The satellite is 494 kg full 380 kg dry, 2.7m long and 1.3m diameter.
In a major test of the satellite, a Minotaur II rocket, TLV-7, was launched at 0830 UTC on Aug 23 from Vandenberg's LF06 silo as NFIRE Mission 2a. The Minotaur II is a three-stage Minuteman 2 missile refurbished by Orbital Sciences with a new guidance and payload section, and has been used for a number of suborbital missile defense tests. (The Minotaur 1 is an orbital launch vehicle which uses the first two stages of a Minuteman 2, topped with two stages taken from the Pegasus space launch vehicle). On each of the two planned Mission 2 flights, the rocket will be aimed to pass within 4 and 20 km of the NFIRE satellite while its third stage motor is burning, allowing NFIRE to get a close look at the rocket and its exhaust. The Missile Defense Agency reported that the Mission 2a flyby was successful.
NFIRE Mission 2A and 2B will use Minotaur II TLV, also called Chimera.
| NFIRE | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 Apr 24 | 0648 | Launch by Minotaur | WI LA0B |
| T+1:01 St 1 sep | |||
| T+1:18 Skirt sep | |||
| T+2:13 St 2 sep | |||
| T+2:15 St 3 burn | |||
| T+2:23 61-inch Fairing sep | |||
| T+3:29 St 3 burnout | |||
| T+7:41 St 3 sep | |||
| 0655 | T+7:52 St 4 burn | ||
| 0657 | T+9:00 St 4 burnout | ||
| 0659? | T+11:00? St 4 sep | ||
| 2007 Apr 24 | 91.67 252 x 459 x 48.22 | ||
| 2007 Apr 26 | Orbit trim | 92.76 255 x 465 x 48.2 | |
| 2007 May 5 | Orbit raise | 91.91 273 x 462 x 48.2 | |
| 2007 May 8 | Orbit raise | 92.79 359 x 462 x 48.2 | |
| 2007 May 11 | Orbit raise | 93.63 441 x 462 x 48.2 | |
| 2007 May 16 | Apogee raise | 94.13 462 x 490 x 48.2 | |
| 2007 May 18 | Orbit raise | 94.48 489 x 497 x 48.2 | |
| 2007 May 24 | Control to MDA | ||
| 2007 Aug 2 | 94.47 489 x 496 x 48.2 | ||
| 2007 Aug 8 | 93.46 397 x 490 x 48.2 | ||
| 2007 Aug 8 | 91.86 243 x 487 x 48.2 | ||
| 2007 Aug 14 | 91.31 245 x 432 x 48.2 | ||
| 2007 Aug 19 | 91.38 236 x 438 x 48.2 | ||
| 2007 Aug 21 | 91.44 230 x 459 x 48.2 | ||
| 2007 Aug 22 | Orbit lower | 211 x 460 x 48.2 | |
| 2007 Aug 23 | Intercept flyby by Minotaur | ||
| 91.24 219 x 450 x 48.2 | |||
| 2008 Nov | Lasercom tests begin | ||
| 2015 Apr | Lasercom experiments end | ||
| 2015 Aug 1 | 93.09 417 x 434 x 48.2 | ||
| 2015 Aug 2? | Orbit lower | ||
| 2015 Aug 3 | Decommissioned | 90.99 316 x 329 x 48.2 | |
| 2015 Oct 24 | 89.98 267 x 278 x 48.4 | ||
Payload:
- TSP Track Sensor Payload, Plume discrimination sensors
- Tesat German laser comms terminal (LCT)
Saturday, January 14, 2017
STEREO-B
2006-047B
| STEREO B | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 Oct 26 | 0052:00s | Launch by Delta 7925-10L | CC SLC17B |
| T+1:03 SRM 1-6 sep | |||
| T+1:06 SRM 7-9 on | |||
| T+1:06 SRM 1-6 sep | |||
| T+2:09 SRM 7-9 out | |||
| T+2:11 SRM 7-9 sep | |||
| T+4:26 MECO | |||
| 0056:34 | T+4:34 Stage 1 sep | ||
| T+4:40 SEIG-1 | |||
| T+4:44 Fairing sep | |||
| 0102:10 | T+10:10 SECO-1 | 165 x 171 x 28.5 | |
| 0107:37 | T+15:37 SEIG-2 98s | ||
| 0109:44 | T+17:44 SECO-2 | 166.2 x 3178.8 x 28.49 | |
| Spinup | |||
| 0109:58 | T+17:58 Stage 2 sep | ||
| 0110:35 | T+18:35 TES | ||
| 0112:04 | T+20:04 TECO | ||
| 0116:55 | T+24:55 Yoyo weights sep | ||
| 0117:00 | T+25:00 TES+386s Stereo-A/B sep from stage 3 | ||
| T+25:58 Insertion: 959 km at 10.335 km/s C3 = -1.8351 km2/s2 x 28.46 | |||
| 0119? | Stereo-A sep from Stereo-B | 172 x 322223 - 484483 x 28.5 | |
| (Horizons) | 182 x 403810 x 28.45 | ||
| 0121? | Begin solar panel deploy | ||
| 0214s | SEIG-3 depletion | ||
| 0214s? | SECO-3 | 184 x 3154 x 24.6 | |
| 1609 | Pass EL1:4 | ||
| 2006 Oct 28 | 1630 | B E1 TCM cal 10 0.2m/s | |
| 2006 Oct 30 | 2100 | B TCM Perigee adjust 11.6m/s 3.5kg 9min | |
| 2006 Oct 31 | 1557 | Apogee 1 410146 km | |
| 2006 Nov 2 | 2100 | B TCM EngBurn2 calibration 0.2m/s | |
| 2006 Nov 6 | 0048? | Stage 3 reentry 200 km N of P. Rico | |
| 0744:14 | B Perigee 1 | 504 x | |
| 2006 Nov 11 | 2145 | Apogee 2, 407578 km | |
| 2006 Nov 14 | 1600 | B TCM-A2+ 25min, 28m/s | |
| 2006 Nov 17 | 1000:00 | B TCM-P2 5:00 (less than 35m/s) | 500-7500 x 414570 x 28.5 |
| 1118 | Perigee 2, 1533 km | ||
| 2006 Nov 23 | 1452 | Apogee 3, 434610 km | |
| 2006 Nov 29 | 1921 | Perigee 3, 4244 km | |
| 2006 Dec 6 | 0229 | Apogee 4, 437965 km | |
| 2006 Dec 6 | 2000 | B TCM-A4 trim 0.2m/s | |
| 2006 Dec 12 | 0954:54 | B perigee 4, 6666 km | |
| 2006 Dec 15 | 0401 | B enter L sphere 66183 km | |
| 2006 Dec 15 | 2103:11 | STEREO B S1 flyby, C/A 11775 km, 10745 km (10037 km) alt | 10038 x -24701 x 30.6 |
| 2006 Dec 16 | 1413 | B depart L sphere | |
| 2006 Dec 21 | 1600 | STEREO B S1+ dV 11m/s orbit trim | |
| 2007 Jan 1 | STEREO B | 130000 x 870000 km x 27.9 | |
| 2007 Jan 2 | 0602 | Apogee 5, 867843 km | |
| 2007 Jan 8 | 1900 | STEREO B TCM A5+ dV 0.79m/s | |
| 2007 Jan 11 | B | 163787 x 853718 x 33.7? | |
| 2007 Jan 20 | 1209 | B enter L sphere | |
| 2007 Jan 21 | 0903 | STEREO B S2 flyby, 8815 km (8820?) alt | 7082 x -30861 x 102.90 |
| 2007 Jan 22 | 0610 | B depart L sphere | |
| 2007 Feb 17 | 1454? | Depart Earth sphere | |
| 2008 Jan 1 | STEREO B | 389.19d 0.9919AU x 1.0946AU x 0.03 | |
| 2011 Jul 31 | 7.4 M km from C/2010X1 Elenin | ||
| 2011 Aug 12 | Radial tail alignment to Elenin | ||
| 2014 Oct 1 | Loss of communication, anomaly in GNC | ||
| 2016 Aug 21 | DSS-14 picks up signal | ||
| 2016 Aug 25 | Commanding in progress | ||
| 2016 Sep 1 | Telemetry shows control improvements | ||
| 2016 Sep 18 | Telemetry received | ||
| 2016 Sep 23 | Carrier wave but no telemetry | ||
| 2016 Oct 11 | Recovery attempts scaled back | ||
Payload:
- SECCHI Sun Earth Connection Coronal and Heliospheric Investigation (NRL/STP/Howard)
- Sun Centered Imaging package
- EUVI Extreme UV imager
- COR1 White light coronagraph
- COR2 White light coronagraph
- Heliospheric imager, very wide field coronagraph
- Sun Centered Imaging package
- SWAVE STEREO Waves, interplanetary radio burst tracker, CNRS/Paris with three 6m wire antennae
- IMPACT In-situ Measurements of Particles and CME Transients, plasma, particles and fields (UCB), with boom
- SWEA Solar Wind plasma electron analyser (on mag boom)
- MAG Magnetometer experiment, on 4.5m boom
- STE Suprathermal electron telescope, 2-20 keV (on mag boom)
- SIT Suprathermal Ion telescope (part of SEP, Solar Energetic Particles, on SC body)
- LET Low energy telescope (part of SEP)
- HET High energy Telescope (part of SEP), particles and ions
Thursday, January 12, 2017
Tansat
2016-081A
Chinese climate satellite (Tan = 'carbon'), to map global CO2 sources and sinks with a precision of 1 percent.
The spectrometer will obtain column-averaged CO2 abundance, with CAI data used to apply corrections for clouds.
| Tansat | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 Dec 21 | 1922 | Launch by CZ-2D Y33 | JQ |
| 1928 | St 2 MECO | ||
| 1930 | St 2 VECO | ||
| 1935? | Tansat sep | 94.54 488 x 504 x 97.4 | |
| 1936? | SECM subsats sep | ||
Payload:
- CarbonSpec High resolution grating spectrometer, three bands, 0.76mu (02), 1.61mu (CO2), 2.06mu (CO2). 20 km swath, 2km res
- CAPI Cloud and Aerosol Imager, wide FOV imaging spectrometer with 5 bands 0.38 to 1.61 mu and two polarization channels.