The following orbital elements are based on the observations obtained over the 2nd and 3rd orbit of NROL-82. NROL-82 522 x 761 km 1 99596U 21117.05771367 .00000000 00000-0 50000-4 0 08 2 99596 98.0546 230.2670 0169852 86.6649 330.9798 14.76209142 07 # 20210426.99-20210427.06, 18 measurements, 0.008 deg rms The orbit is less eccentric compared to typical KH-11 missions, which usually have 260 x 1000 km orbits. However, the mean motion is close to that of those missions. For example, both USA 224 [37348/11002A] and USA 245 [39232/13043A] have a mean motion near 14.81 revolutions per day. Interestingly, the orbital plane of the NROL-82 payload is almost co-planar with that of USA 224, and furthermore, both satellites are in the same orbital phase. Both objects passed the ascending node at 10:53:40UTC today only 7 seconds apart! Over the course of the first two days after launch, the distance between USA 224 and NROL-82 varies from 3000km to 100 km! Though there are still some uncertainties about the precise parameters of the NROL-82 orbit, it certainly appears that USA 224 is, and has been, in a position to monitor NROL-82 during the early checkout phase after launch. Regards, Cees _______________________________________________ Seesat-l mailing list http://mailman.satobs.org/mailman/listinfo/seesat-lReceived on Tue Apr 27 2021 - 06:15:47 UTC
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