spaceflight

Upcoming Launch: Titan 4B

Aug. 18 Titan 4B • NRO
Launch period: 0340-0900 GMT (2340 on the 17th to 0500 EDT)
Launch site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

The Lockheed Martin Titan 4B, known as B-36, will launch a classified payload for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office with Centaur upper stage. The launch will be run by the U.S. Air Force. Delayed from April 28, 2002. Then delayed from June 3 due to spacecraft issue. Then delayed again from Aug. 6 and December 2002 by payload issue. Officials decided to slip this mission until after the Titan/Milstar 6 mission. Delayed from June 9, 2003 by Milstar slip. Moved up from Sept. 15. [Aug. 2]

Aug. 18 Titan 4B • NRO
Launch window:TBA
Launch site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

The Lockheed Martin Titan 4B, known as B-36, will launch a classified payload for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office with Centaur upper stage. The launch will be run by the U.S. Air Force. Delayed from April 28, 2002. Then delayed from June 3 due to spacecraft issue. Then delayed again from Aug. 6 and December by payload issue. Officials decided to slip this mission until after the Titan/Milstar mission. Delayed from June 9 by Milstar slip. Moved up from Sept. 15. [May 21]

See this and more at Spaceflight Now

spaceflight

Pegasus XL to Launch

Aug. 13 Pegasus XL • SciSat 1
Launch window: 0204:10-0301:26 GMT (2204:10-2301:26 EDT on the 12th)
Launch site: Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.

An Orbital Sciences air-launched Pegasus XL rocket will carry the NASA-sponsored, Canadian-built SciSat-1 spacecraft into orbit to study atmospheric ozone depletion. Delayed from June 28, Dec. 20, Jan. 19, May 20, mid-June, July 26 and Aug. 3 targets. [Aug. 7]

Aug. 13 Pegasus XL • SciSat 1
Launch window: 0206-0302 GMT (2206-2302 EDT on 12th)
Launch site: Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.

An Orbital Sciences air-launched Pegasus XL rocket will carry the NASA-sponsored, Canadian-built SciSat-1 spacecraft into orbit to study atmospheric ozone depletion. Delayed from June 28, Dec. 20, Jan. 19, May 20, mid-June, July 26 and Aug. 3 targets. [July 9]

See this and more at Spaceflight Now

spaceflight

Soyuz

Aug. 12 Soyuz • Military
Launch time: TBA
Launch site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan

A Russian Soyuz rocket will launch a classified satellite cargo for the country’s Defence Ministry. [July 28]

See this and more at Spaceflight Now

spaceship earth

Join Me!

On my journey, I’ve been learning how to do things in the online realm. Something I recently created for my web log is a notification box.

If you would like periodic updates to this blog and these events, add YOUR email address to the box under the calendar and press the button!

astronomy

Perseid Meteor Shower

This annual Perseid Meteor Shower is upon us and there are many links to information on how to view them and when and where to look.

Unfortunately, the best viewing and the peak of the meteor shower – August 12 – August 13 – is also during the full moon this year.

Many of these sites are new to me so leave a comment if you learn something interesting (or where to avoid!).

This site looks pretty basic, a nice place to start.

A nice looking British site.

Gary W. Kronk’s information (very detailed)

spaceflight

Launch Alert Just in!

Aug. 8 Sea Launch • EchoStar 9-Telstar 13
Launch time: 0331-0531 GMT (2331 EDT on the 7th to 0131 EDT)
Launch site: Odyssey platform, Pacific Ocean (154° West, 0° North)

The Sea Launch Zenit 3SL rocket will launch a combo satellite to be used jointly between EchoStar and Loral Skynet. Dubbed EchoStar 9, the craft’s Ku-band and Ka-band payload will be operated by EchoStar for its DISH Network direct-to-home entertainment service. The C-band payload will be operated by Loral Skynet as Telstar 13. Delayed from May. [Aug. 1]

See this and more at Spaceflight Now

astronomy

AUGUST, The Eighth Month

from The Old Farmer’s Almanac, 2003
“Venus and Jupiter closely, but invisibly, bunch behind the Sun as they meet on the 22nd, going in opposite directions. Venus transitions from a morning star to an evening star while Jupiter does the converse, a role reversal that will produce brilliance by year’s end. Other wimpy events include Neptune’s opposition on the 4th, the Perseid meteor shower’s washout by a full Moon on the 11th, and Uranus’s opposition on the 24th, when in dark skies it can be dimly glimpsed above Mars by the naked eye. However, kneel before the great Martian opposition on the 28th, when the red planet comes nearer and gets brighter than it has been in thousands of years!”

NOTE: Western Edition quoted, adjust times accordingly

astronomy

The delta Aquarid meteor shower is underway

“METEOR WATCH: Sky watchers who have been going outside between midnight and dawn to see Mars have lately been seeing something else, too: shooting stars. Mars is in the constellation Aquarius, and so is the radiant of the delta Aquarid meteor shower, which peaks this year on July 28th and 29th. This is not a major shower. It produces just 10 to 20 meteors each hour. But if you stand outside for 10 minutes or so, you’re likely to spot two or three delta Aquarids–a lovely bonus for Mars watchers.”

See also: SpaceWeather.com for a cool picture!

Another interesting site.

spaceflight

Launch of DSCS B6

Aug. 3 Delta 4 • DSCS B6
Launch window: 2258-0021 GMT (1858-2021 EDT)
Launch site: SLC-37B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

Boeing Delta 4 Medium rocket will launch the Defense Satellite Communications System B6 spacecraft under the Air Force’s Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program. Delayed from July 1, 11 and 23. [July 28]

See this and more at Spaceflight Now

spaceship earth

Watch out for this exhibit

NASA Science News for July 1, 2003

Would you like to fly to the space station? Take a shower in microgravity?
See Earth from Earth-orbit? If you answered “yes” to any of those questions, then you might want to check out something new at local libraries: a portal to outer space! The NASA @ your library exhibit launches a nationwide tour today, and could be coming soon to a library near you.

Talking Heads