Delta 2 launches GPS satellite
Posted: Mon, Mar 31, 2003, 8:33 PM ET (0133 GMT)
A Delta 2 booster successfully launched a Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite Monday afternoon. The Delta 2 7925 lifted off from pad 17A at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, at 5:09 pm EST (2209 GMT), and spacecraft separation took place 68 minutes later. The launch took place at the end of a 15-minute launch window; the launch was delayed from the beginning of the window because of two range problems. The Delta 2 carried the GPS 2R-9 satellite built by Lockheed Martin. The launch was the second Delta 2 launch of a GPS satellite in as many months, with a third scheduled for July. While new GPS satellites are normally made operational about 60 days after launch, Air Force officials said this new satellite would be pressed into service within two weeks to support the war in Iraq. The next Delta 2 launch is scheduled for mid-April with the inaugural flight of the Delta 2 Heavy, a Delta 2 with the larger strap-on boosters developed for the Delta 3. That booster will launch NASA's Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) spacecraft.
A Delta 2 booster successfully launched a Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite Monday afternoon. The Delta 2 7925 lifted off from pad 17A at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, at 5:09 pm EST (2209 GMT), and spacecraft separation took place 68 minutes later. The launch took place at the end of a 15-minute launch window; the launch was delayed from the beginning of the window because of two range problems. The Delta 2 carried the GPS 2R-9 satellite built by Lockheed Martin. The launch was the second Delta 2 launch of a GPS satellite in as many months, with a third scheduled for July. While new GPS satellites are normally made operational about 60 days after launch, Air Force officials said this new satellite would be pressed into service within two weeks to support the war in Iraq. The next Delta 2 launch is scheduled for mid-April with the inaugural flight of the Delta 2 Heavy, a Delta 2 with the larger strap-on boosters developed for the Delta 3. That booster will launch NASA's Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) spacecraft.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Sunday, January 18
U.S. Support for Jennifer Warren for ITU Radio Regulation Board
US State Department — 7:13 pm ET (0013 GMT) Liechtenstein’s spectrum award to Open Cosmos propels Europe in the space telecommunications infrastructure race
Open Cosmos — 7:11 pm ET (0011 GMT) Expanding 5G connectivity with the Airbus UpNext SpaceRAN demonstrator
Airbus Group — 7:09 pm ET (0009 GMT) AccelerComm participates in Airbus UpNext SpaceRAN Demonstrator, Advancing Global 5G Connectivity in Space
AccelerComm — 7:07 pm ET (0007 GMT) Spacecoin Signs Strategic Agreements with Governments, Telcos, and Industry Partners to Advance Permissionless Connectivity
Medium — 7:05 pm ET (0005 GMT) |
