TRMM elsets
Craig Cholar (3432P@VM1.CC.NPS.NAVY.MIL)
Fri, 28 Nov 97 07:15:45 PST
OIG elsets associated with the TRMM launch, retrieved 11/28 15:10 UT...
97074A 385 x 365 km
1 25063U 97074A 97332.51714211 .00390887 00000-0 38420-2 0 39
2 25063 35.0019 45.4078 0011962 285.0652 74.8754 15.63735995 100
97074B 539 x 376 km
1 25064U 97074B 97332.46300840 .00004551 00000-0 10000-3 0 49
2 25064 34.9720 45.8905 0118868 193.7500 166.0040 15.36097255 46
97074C 526 x 366 km
1 25065U 97074C 97332.46197032 .00090865 00000-0 17054-2 0 56
2 25065 34.5465 47.3225 0117652 193.7093 166.0602 15.40043913 38
97074D 385 x 367 km
1 25066U 97074D 97332.51699590 -.03049481 00000-0 -35676-1 0 28
2 25066 34.9948 45.4125 0013062 290.1196 69.8151 15.64018060 88
They haven't shown up yet in the thirty.tle file, so I'm not certain of
the proper names for each object. I know from the ETS-7 website at
http://yyy.tksc.nasda.go.jp/Home/This/This-e/ets-7_e.html that the
target altitude for the chase/target pair is 550km, so I'm guessing
that they are the B and C objects that were placed into a higher orbit.
The A object is probably TRMM, and the D object is likely the 2nd
stage booster.
Using an early elset for the A object, I was unable to see anything
using binos and a scope during a pass in strong twilight at 6:24 PST.
As a consolation, HST glinted to -2 for a few seconds while I waited for
TRMM to appear. I admit to being distracted by that display, and may have
missed TRMM as a result.
Craig Cholar