U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration satellite launched on Atlas-5 rocket (Forwarded)

News and Communications Office
Los Alamos National Laboratory

Contact:
Nancy Ambrosiano, (505) 667-0471

March 9, 2007

NNSA satellite launched on Atlas-5 rocket

Supercomputer satellite successfully in orbit

LOS ALAMOS, N.M. -- A small-but-smart satellite experiment, the Cibola
Flight Experiment (CFE) developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory for the
Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA),
launched at 10:10 p.m. EST last night aboard a United Launch Alliance
Atlas-5 rocket and was successfully placed in orbit 350 miles above Earth.
The satellite will test leading-edge technologies that will be incorporated
into future generations of satellites that will monitor the globe for
nuclear detonations.

Cibola is one of six experimental satellites aboard the U.S. Department of
Defense Space Test Program-1 mission and was the fifth satellite to separate
from the main unit, 62 minutes after launch, over Australia.

Said project leader Diane Roussel-Dupre, "It looks like the CFE mission is
off to a great success. This type of success can only be realized by the
dedication of a quality team. I am honored to have been a part of this team
.... We all already can be proud to have been contributors."

CFESat is flying eight new technologies for space-flight validation,
including a supercomputer equipped with field-programmable gate arrays
(FPGAs), a new power supply, inflatable antennas, deployable booms, new type
of launch vehicle separation system and a high-density Lithium-Ion battery
pack. Cibola will validate the space use of the Xilinx commercial,
off-the-shelf FPGAs originally intended for use on the ground.

As with the previous Los Alamos ALEXIS and FORTE satellite missions, Cibola
will utilize a specialized ground tracking station located at Los Alamos,
and all satellite operations and data analysis will be conducted from the
site. CFESat is a technology pathfinder mission for the NNSA's Office of
Research and Development (NA-22).

The satellite will operate with an orbital inclination that will allow
observation of land areas as far north as the central United States and as
far south as the tip of Africa. Once in orbit the spacecraft will deploy
four solar panels, providing 110 watts of orbit-averaged power, then deploy
two long booms and three payload antennas: one on the Earth-facing deck and
one each on the two previously deployed booms.

The Cibola payload system also will have a science mission to study
lightning, ionospheric disturbances, and other sources of radio frequency
(RF) atmospheric noise. In addition, Cibola will explore the behavior of the
ionosphere and its effect on communications. The Cibola Flight Experiment
will help develop scientists' understanding of ionospheric weather, along
with developing a predictive capability in determining the effects on
communications and other space operations.

Surrey Satellite Technology, Ltd. of England built the small host satellite
body, CFESat, in 27 months using heritage satellite designs from the
Surrey's disaster monitoring constellation and TopSat mission. In order to
fit into the allowable launch volume, the satellite body measures a mere 24
by 24 by 38 inches and weighs 350 pounds.

Los Alamos National Laboratory is a multidisciplinary research institution
engaged in strategic science on behalf of national security. The Laboratory
is operated by a team composed of Bechtel National, the University of
California, BWX Technologies, and Washington Group International for the
Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration.

Los Alamos enhances national security by ensuring the safety and reliability
of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, developing technologies to reduce threats
from weapons of mass destruction, and solving problems related to energy,
environment, infrastructure, health and global security concerns.