[kstein@erols.com: [HearSat] DOD Rocket Launch]
Walter Nissen (dk058@cleveland.Freenet.Edu)
Fri, 7 Mar 1997 07:42:52 -0500 (EST)
================= Begin forwarded message =================
From: kstein@erols.com (Keith Stein)
To: amsat-dc@amsat.org, hearsat-l@grove.net, milcom@grove.net, SCAN-L@UAFSYSB.UARK.EDU
Subject: [HearSat] DOD Rocket Launch
Date: Sun, 23 Feb
Hello all,
Well I finally saw my first space launch in person, so what if it was only a
little DOD sounding rocket from Wallops Island, VA, hehe, I've never been to
a space launch EVER !!
I went out for the Conestoga launch in 1995, SCRUBBED.
Then I went out for a Pegasus launch in 1996, SCRUBBED.
But this time, the low-cost Department of Defense (DOD) 3-stage launch
vehicle was fired at 5:06 a.m. eastern time (1006 UTC) Sunday morning, Feb.
23rd from NASA's Wallops Island, VA.
The vehicle jumped off the launch pad and climbed into an outstanding clear
sky with comet Hale-Bopp VERY visible just to the left of the rockets flight
path.
Frequencies Active;
-------------------
760 kHz AM NASA Wallops Information Station
121.950 MHz AM NASA 432 (Fokker-27 aircraft, tail# N432NA) performing radar
surveillance of ships in the water off the coast.
126.500 MHz AM Wallops Tower
156.600 MHz NASA Launch Control and Coast Guard ships monitoring ship
movements off the island.
156.800 MHz Coast Guard repeating "notice to mariners" about the launch
and to keep clear of the area.
164.700 MHz Range Safety Officiers (callsigns SKYSCREEN 1, 2, and 3)
providing countdown and vehicle performance during launch. Best
one to monitor for all the details of the flight.
170.400 MHz Voice paging system.
171.000 MHz Security and fire units clearing the island of all personnal.
171.150 MHz Security Net
425.000 MHz Flight Termination System (FTS) carrier came up on this freq.
Range safety announced "FTS is armed, the rocket will
destruct on command if needed".
Now here is the weird part about this launch. The first stage, second stage,
and third stage all looked to perform 100%. But after the flight ended, a
good size green cloud was visible directly over the island and seemed to
burst into a ball with a bright center. Something like the barium
(?spelling?) chemical release experiments NASA and other agencies have done
in the past, weird ?? Or maybe just the three stage falling back into
earth's atmosphere ??
Some great stuff to monitor and SEE, but MAN was is cold out there, hehe !!
Keith Stein
Woodbridge, VA
Community, Air & Space Report
http://www.newspace.com/casr
Satellite Times magazine
http://www.grove.net/hmpgst.html
NASA Information Center
http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/hqlibrary/ic/nasaic.htm
=====
This is the HearSat-l mailing list.
To post to the list, send a e-mail to : hearsat-l@grove.net
To unsubscribe the list, send a mail to: majordomo@grove.net
with only "unsubscribe hearsat-l" in the BODY of the e-mail.
=====