nickw%syma.sussex.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK (Nick Watkins) (08/31/89)
[Two reasons for this posting:
1) One of the most valuable things about sci.military
is its usefulness as an information resource for its readers.
2) I like well-researched lists. :-)
Followups by mail, please, and I hope Mr. Watkins will send
a summary of responses to the group. --CDR]
From: Nick Watkins <nickw%syma.sussex.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK>
I am researching an article, provisionally for "New Scientist", on
military satellites and have a few queries about the DSP and
Rhyolite/Chalet series of spacecraft. From the work of Des Ball (the
books "Pine Gap" & "A Base for Debate"), plus recent issues of AW&ST
(i.e. all unclassified sources) I have the following list:
1968-63a 6 Aug 1968 AAD Early Warning Test (Project 949)
1969-36a 13 Apr 1969 AAD Early Warning Test
1970-46a 19 Jun 1970 AAD Rhyolite SIGINT
1970-69a 1 Sep 1970 AAD Early warning Test
1970-93a 6 Nov 1970 T3C DSP1 (unusable due to Transtage failure)
1971-39a 5 May 1971 T3C DSP2
4 Dec 1971 AAD launch failure
1972-10a 1 Mar 1972 T3C DSP3
1972-101a 20 Dec 1972 AAD Rhyolite SIGINT
1973-13a 6 Mar 1973 AAD Rhyolite SIGINT
1973-40a 12 Jun 1973 T3C DSP4
1975-55a 18 Jun 1975 AAD Argus SIGINT
1975-118a 14 Dec 1975 T3C DSP5 (unusable due to collision with Transtage)
1976-59a 26 Jun 1976 T3C DSP6
1977-07a 6 Feb 1977 T3C DSP7
1977-38a 7 Apr 1977 AAD Rhyolite SIGINT
1977-114a 11 Dec 1977 AAD Rhyolite SIGINT
1978-38a 7 Apr 1978 AAD Rhyolite SIGINT
1978-58a 10 Jun 1978 T3C Chalet SIGINT
1979-53a 10 Jun 1979 T3C DSP8
1979-86a 1 Oct 1979 T3C Chalet SIGINT
1981-25a 16 Mar 1981 T3C DSP9
1981-107a 31 Oct 1981 T3C Chalet SIGINT
1982-19a 6 Mar 1982 T3C DSP10
1984-09a 31 Jan 1984 T34D DSP11 (failed?)
1984-37a 15 Apr 1984 T34D DSP12
1984-129a 22 Dec 1984 T34D Chalet SIGINT
1985-10b 24 Jan 1985 STS Magnum SIGINT
1987-97a 29 Nov 1987 T34D DSP13
1988-77a 2 Sep 1988 T34D Chalet SIGINT (failed)
1989-35a 10 May 1989 T34D Chalet SIGINT
1989-46a 14 Jun 1989 T4 DSP14
AAD = Atlas Agena D
T3C = Titan 3C
T34D = Titan 34D
T4 = Titan 4
STS = Space Shuttle
So my questions:
1) Which of 1970-46 or 1970-69 was more likely to be a Rhyolite? Ball is
certain that one was.
Although the former was often cited as having failed to go into GEO, the
reports at the time in AW&ST were contradictory and various sources list
a GEO not GTO. The launcher for both was occasionally described as an Atlas
Agena D plus a kick stage, anyone know anything about this?
2) Of the launches in 1984, did DSP11 fail to reach GEO as reported by
Ball, and are the identifications of it, DSP12 and the fourth Chalet (1984-129)
correct and in the right order?
Some identifications above may puzzle some people, but Ball's analysis
would, I feel, convince most who had previously only seen, e.g., Curtis
Peebles' book "Guardians" and the early "Spaceflight" articles of the
late Anthony Kenden on this subject,
Nick
----
Nick Watkins, Space & Plasma Physics Group, School of Mathematical
& Physical Sciences, Univ. of Sussex, Brighton, E.Sussex, BN1 9QH, ENGLAND
JANET: nickw@syma.sussex.ac.uk BITNET: nickw%syma.sussex.ac.uk@uk.ac
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