Jonathan's Space Report No 431 2000 Aug 6, Cambridge, MA ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shuttle and Stations -------------------- The Zarya/Unity stack docked with the Zvezda module at 0045 UTC on Jul 26, forming the basic core of the International Space Station. Progress-M1 vehicle No. 251 (Progress M1-3) was launched on Aug 6 and will dock with Zvezda's rear port. Current Launches ---------------- An Orbital Sciences Minotaur was launched from Vandenberg on Jul 19. The payload was Mightysat 2.1, also known as Sindri. The 125 kg satellite is a Spectrum Astro SA-200B platform The Minotaur placed it in a 547 x 581 km x 97.8 deg orbit. The satellite carries a hyperspectral imager for earth imaging and spectroscopy, as well as satellite technology experiments such as advanced solar arrays. An Aerospace Corp./DARPA picosatellite experiment, consisting of two small boxes connected by a deployable tether, is attached to Mightysat and may be deployed later. A similar picosat was deployed on the previous Minotaur launch in January. A Sea Launch Zenit-3SL was launched from the Odyssey platform at 154W 0N in the Pacific on Jul 28. 14 minutes after launch it entered an intermediate parking orbit (parameters unknown); a second burn of the Blok DM-SL upper stage put the PAS-9 payload in geostationary transfer orbit. PAS 9 is a Hughes HS-601HP communications satellite for Panamsat, and will replace PAS 5 at 58W. The first two Cluster satellites have reached their operational orbits. Table of Recent Launches ----------------------- Date UT Name Launch Vehicle Site Mission INTL. DES. Jul 4 2344 Kosmos-2371 Proton-K/DM-2? Baykonur LC200? Comms 36A Jul 12 0456 Zvezda Proton-K Baykonur LC81L Station 37A Jul 14 0521 Echostar VI Atlas 2AS Canaveral SLC36B Comms 38A Jul 15 1200 CHAMP ) Kosmos-3M Plesetsk LC132 Science 39A MITA ) Science 39B Rubin ) Imaging 39C Jul 16 0917 GPS SVN 44 Delta 7925 Canaveral LC17A Navsat 40A Jul 16 1239 Samba ) Soyuz-Fregat Baykonur LC31 Science 41A Salsa ) Science 41B Jul 19 2009 Mightysat 2.1 Minotaur Vandenberg CLF Tech 42A Jul 28 2242 PAS 9 Zenit-3SL Odyssey, POR Comms 43A Aug 6 1827 Progress M1-3 Soyuz-U Baykonur LC1 Cargo Current Shuttle Processing Status _________________________________ Orbiters Location Mission Launch Due OV-102 Columbia Palmdale OMDP OV-103 Discovery OPF Bay 1 STS-92 2000 Oct ISS 3A OV-104 Atlantis OPF Bay 3 STS-106 2000 Sep ISS 2A.2b OV-105 Endeavour OPF Bay 2 STS-97 2000 Nov? ISS 4A MLP-1 MLP-2/RSRM-75/ET-103 VAB Bay 1 STS-106 MLP-3/RSRM-76/ET-104 VAB Bay 3 STS-92 .-------------------------------------------------------------------------. | Jonathan McDowell | phone : (617) 495-7176 | | Harvard-Smithsonian Center for | | | Astrophysics | | | 60 Garden St, MS6 | | | Cambridge MA 02138 | inter : jcm@cfa.harvard.edu | | USA | jmcdowell@cfa.harvard.edu | | | | JSR: http://hea-www.harvard.edu/~jcm/space/jsr/jsr.html | | Back issues: http://hea-www.harvard.edu/~jcm/space/jsr/back | | Subscribe/unsub: mail majordomo@head-cfa.harvard.edu, (un)subscribe jsr | '-------------------------------------------------------------------------'