Re: Geos 6 AKM (83 41C)
Mike McCants (mikem@fc.net)
Fri, 14 Mar 1997 00:15:55 -0600 (CST)
Philip Chien wrote:
>83 41C is the one which puzzles me. This is a GOES geosynchronous weather
>satellite launch on a Delta 3914 launch vehicle. The A object is the
>satellite which is still in geosynchronous orbit, but with a fairly high
>inclination. The B object is the second stage which has almost certainly
>reentered by now.
No, it's still going. With a perigee of 400Km, it's decaying only
very slowly.
1 14051U 83041B 97066.01056855 +.00000941 +00000-0 +84332-4 0 08161
2 14051 025.3421 298.4891 1341376 212.2087 138.9082 12.53402700625376
>The C object is the third stage. On a 3914 model it's a TE-334 (or
>something like that) solid motor which is spin stabilized.
>
>32978.210 km perigee
>
>Both well above geosynchronous altitude.
No, geosynchronous altitude is about 35800Km.
>Was this an unusual launch
>profile which was used to test out ways of saving propellant?
It would seem so. A 1989 SSR gives period 1703 minutes, apogee 54325,
perigee 27405, inclination 1.2 degrees. So the orbit has circularized
to a certain extent in the last 8 years.
I did a "grep" on "AKM" and came up with:
11970 80-074C GOES 4 AKM US 1767.3 0.1 49744 34341
14069 83-041C GOES 6 AKM US 1707.4 14.6 48907 32976
20801 78-062D GOES 3 AKM US 1451.1 13.8 39931 32228 20.0
20835 75-011F SMS 2 AKM US 1460.6 15.0 36693 35837
20837 81-057F METEOSAT 2 AKM (MAGE ESA 1449.0 12.0 36344 35733
21052 69-069D ATS 5 AKM US 1466.7 15.4 36921 35845
22987 94-004C STAR 37FM AKM US 3071.5 67.1 127021 211
Plus some others that were not interesting.
So it would seem that the GOES 4 AKM was in a very similar orbit.
But it was lost soon after launch:
1 11970U 80074C 80281.92956226 -.00000228 +00000-0 +10000-3 0 05798
2 11970 000.0797 299.7585 1590582 040.3925 013.6248 00.81481105000249
----
Flashes from Superbird A this evening at 3:11:00 (+/- 30 seconds)
(March 14, 1997 UT)
----
16144, 85 94G, Cosmos 1690 Rk continues to accelerate very slowly.
I measured a 28 second period. In another decade, it will be going
quite fast. :-)
----
21990, 92 32B, Intelsat K Rk was interesting at a height of 260 miles
(420Km). It seemed to have a period of 14 seconds, but perhaps it
was 28 seconds.
----
I can't tell any difference between 96 9A,B,C,D,E,F. Cosmos or Gonets,
they all look the same. The SSR now says:
23787 96-009A GONETS D1 1 CIS 113.9 82.6 1413 1401 2.8
23788 96-009B GONETS D1 2 CIS 114.0 82.6 1414 1408 1.5
23789 96-009C GONETS D1 3 CIS 114.1 82.6 1415 1411 1.6
23790 96-009D UNK CIS 114.1 82.6 1417 1409 2.9
23791 96-009E COSMOS 2329 CIS 114.2 82.6 1423 1411 1.2
23792 96-009F COSMOS 2330 CIS 114.2 82.6 1429 1411 .77
But these names are reversed from what it said a year ago.
It also says:
24725 97-006A UNKNOWN CIS 114.2 82.6 1423 1413
24726 97-006B UNKNOWN CIS 114.2 82.6 1429 1413
24727 97-006C UNKNOWN CIS 114.0 82.6 1414 1409
24728 97-006D UNKNOWN CIS 114.0 82.6 1414 1402
24729 97-006E UNKNOWN CIS 114.1 82.6 1415 1413
24730 97-006F UNKNOWN CIS 114.1 82.6 1415 1412
So maybe NORAD also doesn't have a clue.
Mike McCants
mikem@fc.net