Jonathan's Space Report No. 324 1997 Jun 8 Cambridge, MA ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I've updated the geostationary launch list at http://hea-www.harvard.edu/QEDT/jcm/space/jsr/geo.log Shuttle and Mir --------------- OV-102 Columbia is in the Vehicle Assembly Building and has been connected to the external tank and solid boosters for flight STS-94, the reflight of the Microgravity Science Lab. OV-103 Discovery is being prepared for the STS-85 science flight; OV-104 Atlantis, just back from the STS-84 Mir flight, is to be turned around for another Mir docking on STS-86; and OV-105 Endeavour is beginning preparations for STS-89, the Mir docking fight after that. Meanwhile, Vasiliy Tsibliev, Aleksandr Lazutkin and Mike Foale continue operations on the Mir complex. The next flight to Mir is the Progress M-35 robot cargo tanker/supply ship. Recent Launches --------------- Arianespace successfully launched an Ariane 44LP on Jun 3. It placed two comsats into a 201 x 35745 km x 7.0 deg transfer orbit. Inmarsat III F-4 is a Series 4000 class comsat built by Lockheed Martin/East Windsor for the International Maritime Satellite Organization. It will provide L-band mobile communications services to ships and aircraft. Insat 2D is a comsat for the Indian Space Research Organization. Kosmos-2344, launched on Jun 6, is a new 11F664 type Russian military satellite in an unusual medium altitude orbit of 1509 x 2747 km x 63.4 deg. This is rather high for an optical observation satellite, and it may be doing electronic intelligence or radar imaging. The Proton-K rocket has rarely been used to launch low orbit military Kosmos satellites; the exceptions are Kosmos-1603 and Kosmos-1656 in 1984-85, which were Tselina-2 SIGINT satellites launched on Proton because the Zenit-2 rocket was not yet operational. On the new launch, the 8S812 third stage of the Proton-K entered a 135 x 148 km x 64.8 deg parking orbit. The Blok DM-2M upper stage ignited for its first burn to enter a transfer orbit of about 200 x 2490 km x 64.6 deg. Before this first burn, a cylindrical adapter probably separated from it but reentered before being cataloged. As the Blok DM-2M reached apogee, two SOZ liquid ullage rockets fired to force DM-2M propellant to the bottom of the tanks; the two SOZ were then jettisoned as the DM-2M reignited for its second burn, entering a 1506 x 2744 km x 63.4 deg orbit. The DM-2M then separated from the 11F664 payload (Kosmos-2344) and from one other object, which may be either a payload adapter or a cover for the payload instruments (lens cap, antenna cover, etc). The 63.4 deg inclination is chosen so that cos i = sqrt(2/5), which minimizes precession of the orbital plane due to the non-spherical shape of the Earth. Molniya comsats, Oko early warning satellites, and US elliptical orbit signals intelligence satellites also use this inclination. SATCAT INTL.DES. Probable ID Orbit 24828 1997-28B 8S812 rocket 135 x 148 x 64.8 Uncataloged Blok DM-2M adapter 135?x 148?x 64.8 24830 1997-28D SOZ 181 x 2490 x 64.5 24832 1997-28E SOZ 201 x 2490 x 64.6 24829 1997-28C Blok DM-2M rocket 1506 x 2744 x 63.4 24833 1997-28F Adapter? 1508 x 2751 x 63.4 24827 1997-28A Kosmos-2344 1509 x 2747 x 63.4 The Kosmos-2343 recon satellite launched in May is in a 216 x 338 km x 64.9 deg orbit. On June 4, Thor 2 was approaching its station at 0.6 deg West longitude drifting 0.2 deg per day. Telstar 5 was on station at 97 deg West. Table of Recent Launches ------------------------ Date UT Name Launch Vehicle Site Mission INTL. DES. May 5 1455 Iridium SV004 ) Delta 7920 Vandenberg SLC2W Comsat 20E Iridium SV005 ) Comsat 20D Iridium SV006 ) Comsat 20C Iridium SV007 ) Comsat 20B Iridium SV008 ) Comsat 20A May 11 1617 DFH-3 CZ-3A Xichang LC2 Comsat 21A May 14 0033 Kosmos-2342 Molniya-M Plesetsk LC43/4 EarlyWarn 22A May 15 0808 Atlantis STS-84 Shuttle Kennedy LC39A Spaceship 23A May 15 1210 Kosmos-2343 Soyuz-U Baykonur LC31 Recon 24A May 20 0707 - Zenit-2 Baykonur LC45 Sigint FTO May 21 2239 Thor 2 Delta 7925 Canaveral LC17A Comsat 25A May 24 1700 Telstar 5 Proton-K/DM-4 Baykonur LC81 Comsat 26A Jun 3 2321 Inmarsat 3 F4) Ariane 44L Kourou ELA2 Comsat 27A Insat 2D ) Comsat 27B Jun 6 1757 Kosmos-2344 Proton-K/DM-2M Baykonur LC200 Recon? 28A Current Shuttle Processing Status ____________________________________________ Orbiters Location Mission Launch Due OV-102 Columbia VAB STS-94 Jul 1 OV-103 Discovery OPF Bay 2 STS-85 Aug 7 OV-104 Atlantis OPF Bay 3 STS-86 Sep 18 OV-105 Endeavour OPF Bay 1 STS-89 Jan 15 MLP/SRB/ET/OV stacks MLP1/RSRM-62/ET-86/OV-102 VAB Bay 1 STS-94 MLP2/ MLP3/RSRM-57 VAB Bay 3? STS-85 .-------------------------------------------------------------------------. | Jonathan McDowell | phone : (617) 495-7176 | | Harvard-Smithsonian Center for | | | Astrophysics | | | 60 Garden St, MS6 | | | Cambridge MA 02138 | inter : jcm@urania.harvard.edu | | USA | jmcdowell@cfa.harvard.edu | | | | JSR: http://hea-www.harvard.edu/QEDT/jcm/space/jsr/jsr.html | | Back issues: ftp://sao-ftp.harvard.edu/pub/jcm/space/news/news.* | '-------------------------------------------------------------------------'