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#1
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Just spotted the MESSENGER second stage
Catching it took a six inch, f/8 Newtonian with a low-powered ocular,
but it was right when and where Heavens-Above said it would be. The Delta second stage was abou ninth magnitude and did not appear to be tumbling. The apparent motion was so slow (15-20 seconds to cross a half-degree field of view) that I was able to hand-guide the scope and observe it for several minutes. --Bill Thompson |
#2
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Apparently, according to H-A, there is a good pass of that rocket this
evening (Sat. 8/21). It looks as if it will be fairly close to apogee and crossing Aquila (among other constellations of course). I'll try to get a look at it. With such a low perigee I assume it can't last in orbit much longer! Paul Z Indianapolis IN |
#3
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I was able to observe the MESSENGER Delta R/B (2004-030B) tonight from about
9:37:20 to 9:40:00 CST (2:37:20 - 2:40:00 UT Aug. 22nd). I printed out a chart from Heavens-Above earlier in the evening and set up the 10" f/4 telescope on an area about 2 degrees south of Alpha Ophiuchi. The satellite soared into view right on time and right where the chart said it would, and I was able to move the telescope manually and follow it through about 12 and a half degrees of sky as it flew off to the east. I watched it pass just north of 72 Ophiuchi and through some showy star fields of the summer Milky Way before losing sight of it as it neared Aquila. Amazing! I've never seen a rocket booster in orbit that was used in launching a probe to another planet! I thought it was between about 8.5 - 9.0 magnitude and steady, though it wasn't easy to make a good brightness estimate. If it was tumbling at all it must be extremely slow, and I missed it while making adjustments to the telescope field of view. It took about 18 seconds to cross my low power field, which at 39X is about 1.3 degrees. Thanks again to Bill Thompson for pointing this one out, while it's still in orbit! I have a couple more satellites to check out tonight. If I'm lucky (and ready to stay up until dawn) I'll be able to catch a pass of 2004-028B and one of the ISS. Paul Z |
#4
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PZeller66 wrote:
Amazing! I've never seen a rocket booster in orbit that was used in launching a probe to another planet! I don't think any others are still in orbit. The Space Calendar (posted monthly on sci.space.news) lists some upcoming launches. The Cosmos solar sail is due for launch some time in September, which should give two objects to watch. The Deep Impact comet probe is scheduled for launch on December 30; Japan plans to launch the Lunar-A probe some time in January; the Lunar TrailBlazer is supposed to launch in March 2005. The MESSENGER probe is scheduled to fly past Earth sometime in July 2005. Also, the Genesis probe should return to Earth on September 8th, but its return trajectory will take it over the daylit portion of the Earth. C-SPAN carried the mission press conference last week. The probe will land at Dugway Proving Ground in north-west Utah, after entering from the north-west. Its entry might be visible in the daylight sky. Thanks again to Bill Thompson for pointing this one out, while it's still in orbit! You're welcome. I have a couple more satellites to check out tonight. If I'm lucky (and ready to stay up until dawn) I'll be able to catch a pass of 2004-028B and one of the ISS. I spotted 04-028B this morning (the skies have finally cleared), but I couldn't make much of an estimate on its tumble rate--two or three times a minute, perhaps. The variation in its brightness was unmistakable, although I couldn't see any sharp peaks in it. --Bill Thompson |
#5
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In message , William R. Thompson
writes PZeller66 wrote: Amazing! I've never seen a rocket booster in orbit that was used in launching a probe to another planet! I don't think any others are still in orbit. The Space Calendar (posted monthly on sci.space.news) lists some upcoming launches. The Cosmos solar sail is due for launch some time in September, which should give two objects to watch. The Deep Impact comet probe is scheduled for launch on December 30; Japan plans to launch the Lunar-A probe some time in January; the Lunar TrailBlazer is supposed to launch in March 2005. The MESSENGER probe is scheduled to fly past Earth sometime in July 2005. Has that date changed? The web site still shows August 1 (my birthday !) |
#6
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Jonathan Silverlight wrote:
William R. Thompson wrote: The MESSENGER probe is scheduled to fly past Earth sometime in July 2005. Has that date changed? The web site still shows August 1 (my birthday !) The Space Calendar says this: "July 2005 * Jul ?? - MESSENGER, Earth Flyby" This was written before the launch; the web site is bound to be more accurate. Thanks for the update. On an earlier topic, there's one more lunar booster still in Earth orbit; it's the Ariane 5 upper stage that carried the SMART-1 probe. It's one of the objects from the 2003-043 launch, but I don't know which one. I'm relying on the H-A listing here. --Bill Thompson |
#7
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In message , William R. Thompson
writes Jonathan Silverlight wrote: William R. Thompson wrote: The MESSENGER probe is scheduled to fly past Earth sometime in July 2005. Has that date changed? The web site still shows August 1 (my birthday !) The Space Calendar says this: "July 2005 * Jul ?? - MESSENGER, Earth Flyby" This was written before the launch; the web site is bound to be more accurate. Thanks for the update. On an earlier topic, there's one more lunar booster still in Earth orbit; it's the Ariane 5 upper stage that carried the SMART-1 probe. It's one of the objects from the 2003-043 launch, but I don't know which one. I'm relying on the H-A listing here. I've asked this before, but has anyone seen SMART-1? The elements on Heavens Above are for November 18, 2003, so they won't be much help! |
#8
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Amazing! I've never seen a rocket booster in orbit that was
used in launching a probe to another planet! At least these three others are still in orbit, all Inertial Upper Stage vehicles: Magellan IUS 1 19970U 89033C 04231.86902853 .00000884 00000-0 34505-3 0 2285 2 19970 27.8448 148.1258 6209025 231.5157 54.6280 3.71287104193919 Galileo IUS r 5.0 2.5 0.0 4.5 v 17 1 20299U 89084C 04236.47718732 .00196744 -14542-6 82001-3 0 3931 2 20299 34.0971 0.8441 2055500 356.0110 2.6111 11.54188165274282 Ulysses Rk 1 20843U 90090C 04232.60258109 .00002022 00000-0 90991-3 0 2773 2 20843 28.4306 320.5979 6868684 350.6587 1.3564 2.79124256134732 http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/past/magellan.html http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA00727 http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/comets/ulysses.html I've managed to see the MESSENGER Delta a couple of times now, using 8x42 binoculars, thanks to Mike McCants having predictions for it when I didn't. I don't remember hearing if anyone has seen SMART 1. One problem with it was that it was (almost?) constantly accelerating, which made any orbital elements go obsolete quickly. Another issue is how soon it got far enough away to be really faint. Ed Cannon - - Austin (Remove "donotspam".) |
#9
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I never did see 04-028B that morning (Sunday), though a great pass was
predicted. Skies were clear, but dense fog moved in after midnight and made any sky watching worthless. I am starting to look forward, more and more, to clear, cool, dry autumn evenings. |
#10
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Ed Cannon wrote:
At least these three others are still in orbit, all Inertial Upper Stage vehicles: Magellan IUS 1 19970U 89033C 04231.86902853 .00000884 00000-0 34505-3 0 2285 2 19970 27.8448 148.1258 6209025 231.5157 54.6280 3.71287104193919 Galileo IUS r 5.0 2.5 0.0 4.5 v 17 1 20299U 89084C 04236.47718732 .00196744 -14542-6 82001-3 0 3931 2 20299 34.0971 0.8441 2055500 356.0110 2.6111 11.54188165274282 Ulysses Rk 1 20843U 90090C 04232.60258109 .00002022 00000-0 90991-3 0 2773 2 20843 28.4306 320.5979 6868684 350.6587 1.3564 2.79124256134732 Thanks for posting these; I hadm't realized they were still in orbit. I spotted the Galileo object just before dawn today. I saw it through a 6" reflector, and it seemed bright enough to be spotted through binoculars. --Bill Thompson |
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