Re: Some sort of burn?

From: Michael McCants (mmccants@jump.net)
Date: Fri Apr 04 2003 - 12:05:55 EST

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    Ed Cannon posted:
    
    >This is from the newsgroup.  The time was 2:30 April 3 
    >UTC, location central Kentucky, USA:
    
    Note: 8:30 PM EST is 1:30 UT, not 2:30.
    
    >> Any rocket launches this evening (Wednesday April 2) 
    >> that would have involved a Barium release?  Around 
    >> 8:30 PM EST, I noticed a fairly bright cloud-like 
    >> glow in the SE part of the sky.  It grew in size over 
    >> the next 15 minutes or so, before dissapating.  This 
    >> was observed from central KY.
    
    This matches the latest GPS orbital circularization and
    plane change burn.  Elsets from OIG:
    
    NAVSTAR 52 (USA 168)
    1 27704U 03010A   03092.94427654  .00040531  51103-7  68380-3 0    88
    2 27704  39.1224 308.7619 6059732  15.9042 356.9453  4.04448484    83
    NAVSTAR 52 (USA 168)
    1 27704U 03010A   03093.29785147 -.00000049  00000-0  10000-3 0   104
    2 27704  54.9562 312.0791 0069556 140.3165 220.2392  1.99814333   110
    
    Output from "latlong":
    
    ***  2003 Apr  3   ***
    
     NCAT 27704 NAVSTAR 52 (USA 168)  (apogee of the eccentric orbit)
      U   HGT HR MN  REVS   LAT  LONG
    189 12494  1 21   1.4  -6.2 -74.9
    190 12509  1 22   1.4  -6.4 -74.9
    190 12522  1 23   1.5  -6.6 -74.9
    190 12536  1 24   1.5  -6.8 -74.9
    191 12548  1 25   1.5  -7.0 -74.9
    
     NCAT 27704 NAVSTAR 52 (USA 168)  (post-burn circular orbit)
      U   HGT HR MN  REVS   LAT  LONG
    187 12504  1 21   0.1  -6.0 -74.9
    187 12504  1 22   0.1  -6.5 -74.9
    188 12505  1 23   0.1  -6.9 -74.8
    188 12506  1 24   0.1  -7.3 -74.8
    189 12507  1 25   0.1  -7.7 -74.7
    191 12511  1 30   0.1  -9.8 -74.5
    
    The "point of intersection" of the pre-burn eccentric orbit
    and the post-burn circular orbit seems to be about 1:23 UTC April 3.
    The "comet" would appear a few minutes after that.  The latitude
    would have been about -7, the longitude would have been about 75 west.
    
    Predictions for "Kentucky":
    
      ***  2003 Apr 3/4  Thu evening/Fri morning  *** Times are UT ***
    
    27704 NAVSTAR 52
      U  MAG    HGT ALT AZI  HRS MIN     R  A    DEC  RANGE
    186 10.7  12507  35 168    1  20    9  9.9 -16.2  13866
    191 10.8  12514  30 168    1  30    9 22.2 -21.0  14113
    
    So the prediction is 30 degrees up in the south.
    
    Mike McCants
    
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