jwm@stdc.jhuapl.edu (Jim Meritt ) (06/05/90)
From: jwm@stdc.jhuapl.edu (Jim Meritt )
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE (MAY 9) -- Two Defense Advanced Research Projects
Agency (DARPA) Multiple Access Communications Satellites (MACSATs) were
successfully inserted into orbit today at 2:04 pm (1804 GMT). The satellites
were launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif, by a Navy-owned Scout
rocket launched at 1:50 pm (1750 GMT).
The MACSATs were to be placed in an orbit of 375 (perigee) x 401
nautical miles (apogee) at an inclination of 90 degrees. Within eight hours,
the satellites will pass over their ground station in McLean, Va. At that
time the functions of the satellites and details of their orbit will be
verified.
The MACSATs are the first of the lightweight, current-generation
satellites to be launched by DARPA. They have data store-and-forward
capabilities, and can facilitate worldwide database transfer and message relay
as well as interrogation of and data collection from unattended sensors.
DARPA hopes to show how this type of communications satellite can be useful in
military tactical operations.