Jonathan's Space Report Jul 8 1991 (no.79) ---------------------------------------------------- Atlantis is on the pad. The STS-43 mission will deploy a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS), launch is scheduled for the last week of the month. Crew are Col John Blaha (Commander), Cdr Mike Baker (Pilot), Dr Shannon Wells Lucid (Mission Specialist 1), David Low (Mission Specialist 2), Col. James Adamson (Mission Specialist 3). Anatoliy Artsebarksiy and Sergey Krikalyov continue in orbit aboard the Mir/Kvant/Kvant-2/Kristall/Soyuz TM-12/Progress M-8 complex. Correction: the atmospheric study satellite deployed from Mir was 'Mak', which is the Russian word for the poppy flower. The 11th Resurs-F remote sensing satellite was launched from Plesetsk on Jun 28. The 23rd Gorizont communications satellite was launched by Proton from Baykonur on Jul 2. The X-248 Altair I rocket stage used to orbit the first Tiros weather satellite reentered on Jul 2 after 31 years in orbit. It was launched into orbit on 1 Apr 1960 as the third stage of a Thor Able II launch vehicle, and had the catalog number 28 and the international designation 1960 Beta 1. Tiros 1 (1960 Beta 2) remains in a 660x700 km orbit. The only object with a lower catalog number to reenter in the past twenty years was the Baby Sergeant upper stage used to orbit Explorer 7, which reentered in Jul 1989. ___________________________________ |Current STS status: | |Orbiters | | | |OV-102 Columbia OPF Bay 2 | |OV-103 Discovery OPF Bay 1 | |OV-104 Atlantis LC39A | |OV-105 Endeavour VAB Bay 2 | | | |ML/ET/SRB stacks | | | |ML1/STS-43/ET/OV-104 LC39A | |ML2 | |ML3/STS-48 VAB Bay 3 | ----------------------------------- Launches 1991 Jun Launch Date Payload Launch vehicle Site Payload User/Contractor 1991-39 Jun 4 Okean Tsiklon 3 Plesetsk GUGK/NPO Yuzhnoy 1991-40 Jun 5 STS-40 Space Shuttle Kennedy NASA/Rockwell 1991-41 Jun 11 Kosmos-2150 Kosmos R-14 Plesetsk KGB?/NPO Yuzhnoy? 1991-42 Jun 13 Kosmos-2151 Tsiklon 3 Plesetsk GRU/NPO Yuzhnoy 1991-43 Jun 18 Molniya-1 Molniya Plesetsk MSvyazi/NPO-PM 1991-44 Jun 28 Resurs-F Soyuz Plesetsk GUGK/KB Foton 1991-45 Jun 29 REX Scout G-1 Vandenberg USAF/DSI New objects in orbit 1991 Jun Jun 4 1991-39B Tsiklon 3 rocket 633x664x82.5 Jun 4 1991-39A Okean satellite 634x665x82.5 Ocean studies Jun 5 1991-40A OV-102 Columbia spaceship 278x296x39.0 Landed Edwards AFB Jun 14 Jun 5 1991-40A Spacelab SLS 1 278x296x39.0 Aboard OV-102 Jun 9? 1986-17DJ to DT Mir garbage bags (9) 355x392x51.6 Jun 11 1991-41B Kosmos R-14 rocket 802x812x74.0 Jun 11 1991-41A Kosmos-2150 satellite 783x808x74.0 Communications Jun 11 1991-41C Kosmos-2150 adapter? 802x812x74.0 Jun 12 1986-17DV Mak satellite 377x388x51.6 Deployed from Mir Jun 12 1986-17DU Mak satellite container? 305x369x51.6 Jun 13 1991-42B Tsiklon 3 rocket 636x661x82.5 Jun 13 1991-42A Kosmos-2151 satellite 636x662x82.5 Electronic intelligence sat Jun 18 1991-43B Blok-I rocket 209x402x62.8 Reentered Jul 2 Jun 18 1991-43C Blok-L rocket adapter 175x448x62.8 Reentered Jun 27 Jun 18 1991-43D Blok-L rocket 442x40627x62.9 Jun 18 1991-43A Molniya-1 satellite 449x39900x62.9 Communications Jun 20 1986-17DW to ED Mir garbage bags (8) 384x390x51.6 Jun 20 1991-35C Resurs-F engine 217x228x82.3 Jettisoned from Resurs-F Jun 20 1991-35D,E Resurs-F engine adapters 205x220x82.3 Reentered Jun 20, Jun 23 Jun 25 1986-17EE to EH Kvant antenna repair parts (4) 388x392x51.6 Debris from EVA? Jun 28 1991-44B Blok-I rocket 180x240x82.3 ?? Reentered Jun 30 Jun 28 1991-44A Resurs-F satellite 230x235x82.3 ?? Remote sensing Jun 29 1991-45B Star 20 rocket 830x830x90 ?? Jun 29 1991-45A REX satellite 830x830x90 ?? USAF radiation experiment Jun 29 1991-45C REX part 830x830x90 ?? Also cataloged during June Jun 1991-09BP to BX Kosmos R-14 rocket debris,9 obj 1400x1700x74.0 Exploded 1991 Mar? Jun 1975-52DN to GU Delta 111 debris, 78 objects 1000x1500x99.9 Exploded 1991 May 1 Note: the names and descriptions of satellites are my own guesses at the most likely identifications of given objects. Orbits are perigee height (km) x apogee height (km) x inclination (deg). Copyright 1991 Jonathan McDowell. Information in this report is obtained from public sources and does not reflect the official views of NASA. .-----------------------------------------------------------------------------. | Jonathan McDowell | phone : (205)544-7724 | | Space Science Lab ES65 | uucp: | | NASA Marshall Space Flight Center | bitnet : | | Huntsville AL 35812 | inter : mcdowell@xanth.msfc.nasa.gov | | USA | | '-----------------------------------------------------------------------------'