GPS Launch tonight
Ron Lee (ronlee@pcisys.net)
Tue, 22 Jul 1997 18:28:18 -0600 (MDT)
An Air Force Delta 2 rocket is to the launch the Global Positioning
System Block 2R-2 spacecraft on the evening of July 22.
The McDonnell Douglas-built rocket is scheduled for liftoff from pad 17A
at Cape Canaveral Air Station, Fla.,during a launch window of 11:43 p.m. to
12:12 a.m. EDT (0343-0412 GMT).
GPS 2R-2 is identical to the military navigation satellite lost in the
January explosion of a Delta 2 from Cape Canaveral. The satellite, built by
Lockheed Martin, provides users with precision information such as location
anywhere in the world within a few feet, their speed within a fraction of a
mile per hour, and the time within a fraction of a second. Once on orbit, the
satellite will replace an aging GPS spacecraft in the constellation.
The launch can be seen domestically on satellite Galaxy 4, Transponder 9
beginning at 11:30 p.m. EDT (0330
GMT).
If anyone has preliminary elsets I would like to see if it is visible soon
after launch.
Will search some archives for previous launches.
Ron Lee