SPACEWARN Bulletin Number 514

SPACEWARN Activities

A. List of New International Designations and Launch Dates.

1996-049A (24285) FAST              21 Aug
1996-048A (24282) CHINASAT 7        18 Aug
1996-047A (24280) Soyuz TM-24       17 Aug
1996-046B (24278) JAS 2             17 Aug
1996-046A (24277) ADEOS             17 Aug
1996-045A (24273) Molniya 1-89      14 Aug
1996-044B (24209) TELECOM 2D        08 Aug
1996-044A (24208) ITALSAT 2         08 Aug
1996-043A (24071) Progress M-32     31 Jul
1996-042A (23967) UFO 7             25 Jul

B. Text of Launch Announcements.

1996-049A

FAST (Fast Auroral SnapshoT explorer) is an American space physics spacecraft that was launched at 09:47 UT by a Pegasus-XL rocket from aboard an L-1011 cargo plane flying out of Vandenberg AFB. The 187 kg spacecraft carries three electrostatic analyzers for ions and electrons, a mass spectrometer, a wave-particle correlator, a Langmuir probe, and a magnetometer, all of which will address the auroral phenomena. Initial orbital parameters were period 133 min, apogee 4,159 km, perigee 348 km, and inclination 83 deg.

1996-048A

CHINASAT 7 is a PRC satellite that was intended to become a geosynchronous communications spacecraft. It was launched by a Long March 3 rocket from Xichang launch center at 10:27 UT, but a third stage failure led to an almost useless orbit. The initial orbital parameters were period 309 min, apogee 17,320 km, perigee 198 km, and inclination 27 deg.

1996-047A

Soyuz TM-24 is a Russian transport spacecraft that carried three cosmonauts to the MIR station. It was launched by a Soyuz-U rocket from Baykonur at 13:17 UT, and docked with Mir at 14:50 UT on the nineteenth of August. Initial orbital parameters were period 89.8 min, apogee 287.4 km, perigee 235.1 km, and inclination 51.65 deg.

1996-046B

JAS 2 is a 50 kg Japanese Amateur-radio Satellite that was launched by an H-2 rocket from Tanegashima Space Center at 01:29 UT. Initial orbital parameters were period 106 min, apogee 1317 km, perigee 797 km, and inclination 98.6 deg.

1996-046A

ADEOS (ADvanced Earth Observation Satellite) is a Japanese remote sensing spacecraft that was launched by an H-2 rocket from Tanegashima Space center at 01:53 UT. The 3,500 kg spacecraft with the post-launch name of MIDORI carries instruments to monitor wind and temperature on ocean surfaces and aerosols, ozone, and greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Some of the sensors were provided by NASA, NOAA, and CNES. The initial parameters of the Sun-synchronous orbit were period 101 min, apogee 815 km, perigee 794 km, and inclination 98.6 deg.

1996-045A

Molniya 1-89 (Molniya 1T) is a Russian communications spacecraft that was launched from Plesetsk cosmodrome at 22:21 UT by a Molniya-M "reusable" booster to provide telephone, telegraph, and television coverage. Initial orbital parameters were period 12 hr, 17 min, apogee 40,828 km, perigee 498 km (over the southern hemisphere), and inclination 63 deg.

1996-044B

TELECOM 2D is a French geosynchronous spacecraft to provide voice and video communications to western Europe. It was launched by an Ariane 44L rocket from Kourou.

1996-044A

ITALSAT 2 is an Italian geosynchronous communications spacecraft that was launched by an Ariane 44L rocket from Kourou. The 2,000 kg spacecraft carries transponders in the 20-22 GHz range to provide voice and video communications to Europe.

1996-043A

Progress M-32 is a Russian automatic cargo craft that was launched by a Soyuz-U launcher from Baykonur at 20:00 UT to deliver to MIR 2,500 kg of supplies and equipment. Initial orbital parameters were period 88.6 min, apogee 248 km, perigee 193 km, and inclination 51.6 deg.

1996-042A

UFO 7 (UHF Follow On 7; also known as USA 127) is an American geosynchronous military communications spacecraft that was launched from Cape Canaveral Air Station by an Atlas 2 rocket. An earlier announcement from USSPACECOM had the now-discarded name UHF F/O F7.

C. Spacecraft Particularly Suited for International Participation

Category I

1. Spacecraft with essentially continuous radio beacons on frequencies less than 150 MHz, or higher frequencies if especially suited for ionospheric or geodetic studies. To see a list select here.
2. Global Positioning System satellites useful for navigational purposes and geodetic studies. To see a list select here.

   The GPS 2-NN series orbits in six distinct planes that are about 60 deg apart. Each plane has five "slots." Following are the 2-NN members in the planes/slots. The RAAN decreases or increases by about 1.0 deg each month; below are their approximate RAAN longitudes in July 1996.

   PLANE    RAAN OF PLANE SLOT-1     SLOT-2      SLOT-3      SLOT-4  SLOT-5
   
     A           226       2-21       2-12        2-15        2-04
     B           286       2-18                   2-02        2-22
     C           348       2-24       2-25        2-19        2-20   2-13
     D            51       2-11       2-09        2-05        2-23
     E           108       2-01       2-08        2-26        2-10   2-03
     F           167       2-16       2-14        2-06        2-17
   

3. Russian Global Navigational (Positioning) Spacecraft, GLONASS constellation. To see a list select here.

   The GLONASS NNN series orbit in three distinct planes that are 120 deg apart. Each plane has eight "slots". Following are the members of the planes/slots.

      Plane 1              Plane 2              Plane 3
   slot-1   771         slot-9    776/778    slot-17   760
   slot-2   757         slot-10   781        slot-18   758
   slot-3   763         slot-11   785        slot-19   777
   slot-4   762         slot-12   767        slot-20   765
   slot-5   249         slot-13   782        slot-21   756
   slot-6   764         slot-14   770        slot-22   766
   slot-7   759         slot-15   780        slot-23   761
   slot-8   769         slot-16   775        slot-24   774
   

   Coordinational Scientific Information Center (CSIC) Russian Space Forces
   E-mail: sfcsic@iki3.bitnet; sfcsic@iki3.iki.rssi.ru; sfcsic@mx.iki.rssi.ru
   Home page WWW.IKI: http://www.rssi.ru/SFCSIC/SFCSIC_main.html

4. Actual decays/landings of payload spacecraft and rocket bodies (R/B) only. Additional information is not available.

   Designations       Common Name                    1996
   
   1980-092D (12070)  R/B SL-6                      07 Aug
   1996-043B (24072)  R/B SL-4                      03 Aug
   1995-054F (23685)  R/B SL-12                     02 Aug
   1996-028A (23860)  PROGRESS M-31                 01 Aug
   

5. Miscellaneous Items. (This section contains information/data that are entered on occasion and may not be repeated in each issue of the SPACEWARN Bulletin.)

   NSSDC/WDC-A-R&S is an archival center for science data from many spacecraft. Some data are on line for electronic access. Please contact the NSSDC Request Coordination Office, Code 633, NASA/GSFC, Greenbelt, Maryland 20771, U.S.A., for specific information (request@nssdca.gsfc.nasa.gov). Information on the current status of the instruments on board from the investigators will be most welcomed. Precomputed trajectory files and orbital parameters of many magnetospheric and heliospheric science-payload spacecraft may be FTP'ed from NSSDC's ANON_DIR:[000000.ACTIVE] and its several subdirectories. (See About the SPACEWARN Bulletin for access method; a file in the ACTIVE directory named AAREADME.DOC, outlines the contents.) It can also be accessed via the WWW at:
   http://sscop1.gsfc.nasa.gov/ssc.html

   This URL also enables executing several codes related to the orbits of many geocentric science payload spacecraft. The codes related to the heliospheric spacecraft trjectories can be executed through:
   http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/space/helios/heli.html

   Magnetospheric, Planetary, and Astronomical science data from many spacecraft may be accessed through links from the URL:
   http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/

Questions/comments about the content of these pages should be directed to: The World Warning Agency for Satellites, wwas@nssdca.gsfc.nasa.gov National Space Science Data Center, Mail Code 633 NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771

NASA Official: J. H. King, joe.king@gsfc.nasa.gov
V1.0: 27 August 1996
Last Updated: 29 August 1996, EVB II