ICESAT/CHIPSAT elements; flash timings requested

From: Ted Molczan (molczan@rogers.com)
Date: Mon Jan 13 2003 - 11:13:32 EST

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    Here are the latest elements:
    
    ICESAT           3.1  1.9  1.9  6.3 d
    1 27642U 03002A   03013.47461786 -.00152797  00000-0 -14756-1 0    51
    2 27642  94.0054 181.2350 0011383 237.1104 122.8978 14.93702444    60
    CHIPSAT          1.0  1.0  0.2  9.0 d
    1 27643U 03002B   03013.47459662 -.00068617  00000-0 -65278-2 0    44
    2 27643  94.0139 181.2415 0011012 240.2890 119.7357 14.93824705    64
    DELTA 2 R/B
    1 27644U 03002C   03013.47437861 -.00058050  00000-0 -53961-2 0    82
    2 27644  94.0117 181.2398 0014559 242.8223 117.1585 14.94641007    66
    DPAF
    1 27645U 03002D   03013.46008343  .00266844  20949-4  10182-2 0    43
    2 27645  97.5380 189.6114 0220731  73.2572 289.2762 15.58970950    59
    
    The above names are the official ones at this time; however, the elements assigned to 
    the Delta 2nd stage and the DPAF (Dual Payload Attach Fitting) need to be swapped. 
    ICESAT rode atop the DPAF; CHIPSAT rode within it. The DPAF was jettisoned after 
    ICESAT and before CHIPSAT, so all three must be in about the same orbit.
    
    The Delta 2nd stage performed a manoeuvre to deplete its propellant and hasten its
    decay, which would appear to have resulted in the orbit incorrectly assigned to the
    DPAF.
    
    On 2002 Dec 07, Will Marchant posted a request on behalf of the CHIPSAT project, for 
    "photoelectric (or perhaps video?) observations":
    
    http://satobs.org/seesat/Dec-2002/0113.html
    
    I estimate that on favourable passes, the object may reach about 7th magnitude. 
    Good passes will occur at latitudes north of about 50 deg in the coming days.
    
    Ted Molczan
    
    
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