Re: Decay Watch: Molniya 3-16
Alan Pickup (alan@wingar.demon.co.uk)
Sat, 24 Jan 1998 15:14:26 +0000
Regarding the very low perigee of Molniya 3-16, Ron Lee writes
>I will let the experts correct me on this, but I think that perturbations
>can lower the perigee. Of course it could have been done on purpose to
>force it to decay.
The decrease in perigee height from almost 400 km a year ago can be put
down entirely to luni-solar gravitational perturbations, and the fall is
probably still continuing. The 69 km perigee height in the latest OIG
elset...
Molniya 3-16 26192 x 69 km
1 12512U 81054A 98023.91000000 .00001534 -99657-5 00000-0 0 391
2 12512 62.1530 93.5650 6695287 272.3010 102.7930 3.18642047123414
...may be too low, and the drag term should probably be closer to 0.045
than the .00001534 given. On the other hand the perigee in these
predictions may be too high...
Molniya 3-16 25595 x 89 km
1 12512U 81054A 98024.76976541 .04584700 61046-3 90416-3 0 90369
2 12512 61.9771 93.2232 6635098 272.3430 19.0341 3.25839457123575
Molniya 3-16 25375 x 89 km
1 12512U 81054A 98025.07547715 .04641284 62361-3 90248-3 0 90366
2 12512 61.9538 93.1265 6615709 272.3537 19.1895 3.28659888123583
Molniya 3-16 25157 x 89 km
1 12512U 81054A 98025.37857213 .04698576 63673-3 90087-3 0 90360
2 12512 61.9319 93.0294 6596304 272.3647 19.3454 3.31490692123596
Molniya 3-16 24942 x 89 km
1 12512U 81054A 98025.67908535 .04756587 65025-3 89932-3 0 90364
2 12512 61.9099 92.9321 6576882 272.3758 19.5016 3.34332032123606
Molniya 3-16 24728 x 89 km
1 12512U 81054A 98025.97705103 .04815331 66418-3 89784-3 0 90368
2 12512 61.8879 92.8345 6557442 272.3871 19.6581 3.37184074123616
Alan
--
Alan Pickup | COSPAR site 2707: 55d53m48.7s N 3d11m51.2s W 156m asl
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