1964-047A
The Syncom C payload, Syncom III on orbit, was launched on 1964 Aug 19 at 1215.02 UT. The launch vehicle was the first (and one of only 2) Delta D model, with a Thrust Augmented Thor first stage and an Altair 2 third stage. By 1241 UT the Syncom was in transfer orbit, with apogee motor firing coming on Aug 20. The apogee motor was a JPL SR-12-1 like that of Syncom II. By around Sep 10 the satellite had reportedly reached geostationary orbit at 180 deg East. However, archival NORAD data indicates the initial position was actually 61W, and it reached 180W around Nov 3. On 1965 Apr 1, responsibility for the satellite was transferred to the Department of Defense. During 1965 the satellite was stationed over the Atlantic, but in late 1965 began to drift when fuel ran out. In 1973 Syncom III was revived for engineering tests, and the first geostationary satellite was finally switched off on 1974 Dec 29.
During launch, the second stage yawed 38 deg left, reducing third stage orbit inclination to 16.5 deg. Stage 2 velocity was 6.73 km/s, with Stage 3 adding 3.266 km/s for a stage 3 perigee velocity of 9.517 km/s (TN-D-3375).
| Syncom 3 | |||
| Date | Time | Event | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 Aug 19 | 1215:02 | Launch by Thor Delta | |
| 1216:12 | SRM sep | ||
| 1217:30 | Thor MECO | ||
| 1217:34 | Thor S/N 20104 sep 112 km | -4832 x 384 x 28.6 | |
| 1217:34 | Delta S/N 20010 burn | ||
| 1217:45 | Fairing | ||
| 1220:26 | Delta SECO 362 km alt, range 967 km | -796 x 1127 x 28.7 | |
| 1241:05 | Spinup | ||
| 1241:07 | Delta sep | ||
| 1241:12 | Altair 2 RH-67 burn 22.6s at 1126 km | ||
| 1241:35 | RH-67 burnout | ||
| 1242:22 | Altair 2 sep | 694.43 1112 x 38083 x 16.80 | |
| Delta impact (vac) 28.5S 85.4E | ||
| 1964 Aug 20 | 1717:56 | AKM burn at 3rd apo | |
| 1718:16 | AKM burnout | 3.3W/d | |
| 1964 Aug 22 | 0454 | TCM | 7.1E/d |
| 1964 Aug 28 | 1407 | TCM | 3.3E/d |
| 1964 Sep 10 | 1030 | TCM On station 180E? | 2.06W/d |
| 2245 | TCM | 1.01W/d | |
| 1964 Sep 11 | 2240 | TCM | 0.01W/d |
| 1964 Sep 25 | 0257 | Reduce inc to 0.006 | |
| 1964 Sep 25 | 0347 | 1435.94 35640 x 35926 x 1.0 GEO 61.0W+0.0W | |
| 1964 Oct 1 | 0851 | Orbit trim | |
| 2050 | Orbit trim | ||
| 1964 Oct 2 | 0848 | Orbit trim to 0.003 deg/d | |
| 1964 Oct 30 | 1701 | Orbit longitude trim | |
| 1964 Nov 3 | 1436.53 35790 x 35799 x 0.1 GEO 180.0W+0.2E | ||
| 1965 Jan | Over POR | ||
| 1965 Mar 2 | 1436.63 35785 x 35808 x 0.2 GEO 2.0W+0.1E | ||
| 1965 Apr 1 | To DoD | ||
| 1965 Jun 1 | 1436.13 35783 x 35791 x 0.1 GEO 24.9W+0.0E | ||
| 1965 Jul 8 | To DoD | ||
| 1965 Sep 25 | 1436.20 35784 x 35792 x 0.1 GEO 27.0W+0.0E | ||
| 1966 Mar 3 | 1436.84 35788 x 35813 x 0.7 GEO 20.5E+0.2E | ||
| 1966 Jun 15 | GEO 165 E | ||
| 1966 Aug 24 | GEO 161 E | ||
| 1967 Mar 16 | 1536.49 35786 x 35802 x 1.5 GEO 21.2W+0.1E | ||
| 1967 Apr 18 | GEO 158 E | ||
| 1967 May 17 | GEO 157 E | ||
| 1967 Jun 02 | GEO 157 E | ||
| 1967 Dec 07 | GEO 160 E | ||
| 1968 Apr 30 | 1436.43 35778 x 35808 x 2.6 GEO 158.3E+0.1E | ||
| 1969 Apr | Out of service | ||
| 1971 Apr 13 | 1438.17 35795 x 35858 x 5.5 GEO 150.6W+0.5E | ||
| 1973 Aug 31 | GEO 148 E | ||
| 1974 May 14 | GEO 63 E + 0.4W/d | ||
| 1974 Oct 01 | GEO 5 E + 0.2W/d | ||
| 1974 Dec 6 | GEO 1436.87 35744 x 35858 x 8.6 GEO 5.9W+0.2E | ||
| 1974 Dec 24 | GEO 2 W + 0.1W/d | ||
| 1974 Dec 26 | Revived for eng tests | ||
| 1974 Dec 29 | Decommissioned | ||
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