Fltsatcom-c Press Kit

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National Aeronautics an dSpace AdministrationWashington. DC 20546AC 202 755-8370

For Release IMMEDIATE

Press Kit Project FLTSATCOM-CRELEASE NO: 79-155

ContentsGENERAL RELEASE .....................................1-3ATLAS CENTAUR LAUNCH VEHICLE ........................ 4LAUNCH VEHICLE CHARACTERISTICS ......................5LAUNCH OPERATIONS .................................... 6LAUNCH SEQUENCE FOR FLTSATC:OM-C .....................7THE NASA FLTSATCOM TEAM ..............................8

November 21, 1979


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gw\ Newsational Aeronautics andSpace AdministrationWashington DC 20546AC 202 755-8370

For Releaseim KukowskiHeadquarters, Washington, D.C. IMMEDIATEPhone: 202/755-3090)

Laurence H. BolesLewis Research Center, Cleveland, OhioPhone: 216/433-4000 Ext. 415)

RELEASE NO: 79-155

THIRD FLTSATCOM TO BE LAUNCHED

The third of five FLTSATCOM communications satelliteswill be launched by NASA from the Kennedy Space Center, Fla.,no earlier than Tuesday, Dec. 4, 1979. The Department ofDefense satellite is intended for service over the westernPacific Ocean.

FLTSATCO1-C will be placed in a geostationary orbitat 172 degrees cast longitude above the equator, where itwill provide two-way communications in the 240 to 400 MHzfrequency band, between any two points on Earth visible fromits orbital location. The spacecraft has a design life offive years.-more-


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-2-The FLTSATCOM program is managed by the Naval ElectronicSystems Command. The Air Force Space Division is responsiblefor production, launch vehicle/spacecraft integration andtracking and data acquisition.

The FLTSATCoM satellites are the spaceborne portion ofa worldwide Navy, Air Force and Department of Defense communi-cations system that enables communicating between naval air-craft, ships, submarines, ground stations, Strategic Air Com-mand elements and presidential command networks.

The satellite system will provide 23 ultra high frequency communication channels and one super high frequencychannel.

This will be the 52nd launch of an Atlas Centaur, NASA'sstandard launch vehicle for intermediate-weight payloads.The first Atlas Centaur was launched May 8, 1962.

NASA is reimbursed for all additive costs of the AtlasCentaur and launch services by the Department of Defenseunder provisions of a launch services agreement.

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The Atlas Centaur (AC-49) launch vehicle will placeFLTSATCOM-C into a highly elliptical orbit of 167 by 35,970kilometers (104 by 22,351 miles). After reorientation ofthe satellite, a solid propellant rocket motor aboard thespacecraft will be fired to circularize the orbit at a syn-chronous altitude of 35,788 km (22,237 mi.). At that alti-tude, because the speed of the spacecraft in orbit matchesthe rotational speed of the Earth, the satellite remains inposition over one spot on the equator.

NASA's Lewis Research Center, Cleveland, Ohio, hasmanagement responsibility for the Atlas Centaur developmentand operation. NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., is assignedvehicle checkout and launch responsibility once the vehiclereaches Cape Canaveral.

The FLTSATCOM satellites, built in Redondo Beach,Calif., by the Defense and Space Systems Group of TRW, Inc.,are 6.7 meters (22 feet) tall and weigh 1,1'76 kilograms(4,136 pounds) at liftoff and 1,005 kg (2,216 lb.) afterapogee motor firing.

(END OF GENERAL RELEASE; DETAILED INFORMATION FOLLOWS)

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ATLAS CENTAUR LAUNCH VEHICLE

The Atlas Centaur is NASA's standard launch vehicle forntermediate weight payloads. It is used for the launch ofarth orbital, Earth synchronous and interplanetary missions.Centaur was the nation's first high energy, liquid-hydrogen/liquid-oxygen propelled rocket. Developed andlaunched under the direction of NASA's Lewis Research Center,t became operational in 1966 with the launch of Surveyor 1,he first U.S. spacecraft to soft-land on the Moon's surface.Since that time, both the Atlas booster and Centaursecond stage have undergone many improvements. At present,the vehicle combination can place 4,536 kg (10,000 lb.) inow Earth orbit, 1,882 kg (4,150 lb.) in a synchronoustransfer orbit and 907 kg (2,000 lb.) on an interplanetarytrajectory.The Atlas Centaur, standing approximately 39.9 m (131ft.) high, consists of an Atlas SLV-3D booster and Centaur-lAR second stage. The Atlas booster develops 1,920 kilo-ewtons (431,300 lb.) of thrust at liftoff using two 822,920-ewton (185,000-lb.) thrust booster engines, one 266,890-N(60,000-lb.) thrust sustainer engine and two vernier engineseveloping 2,890 N (650 lb.) thrust each. The two RL-10engines on Centaur produce a total of 133,450 N (30,000 lb,.)hrust. Both the Atlas and the Centaur are 3 m (10 ft.) iniameter.Until early 1974, Centaur was used exclusively in com-ination with the Atlas booster. It was subsequently usedith a Titan III booster to launch heavier payloads intoarth orbit and interplanetary trajectories.The Atlas and the Centaur vehicles have been updatedover the years. Thrust of the Atlas engines has been in-reased about 22,400 N (50,000 lb.) since their first usen the space program in the early 1960s.The Centaur D-lAR has an integrated electronic systemthat performs a major role in checking itself and otherehicle systems before launch and also maintains controlof major events after liftoff. The new Centaur systemhandles navigation and guidance tasks, controls pressuri-zation and venting, propellant management, telemetry for-ats and transmission and initiates vehicle events. Mostperational needs can be met by changing the computersoftware.

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LAUNCH VEHICLE CHARACTERISTICS

Liftoff weight including spacecraft: 148..591.4 kg(327,503 lb.)Liftoff height: 39.9 m (131 ft.)Launch Complex: 36A

Atlas Booster Centaur StageWeight (with 130,450 kg 17,671.1 kgpropellants) (287,594 lb.) (38,953 lb.)Height 21.3 m (70 ft.) 18.6 m (61 ft.)

with payloadfairingThrust 1,919 kn 133,447 N(431,300 lb.) (30,000 lb.)at sea level in vacuumPropellants Liquid oxygen Liquid oxygen andand RP-1 liquid hydrogenPropulsion MA-5 system two Two 66,723-N822,921-N (185,000- (15,000-lb.)lb.) thrust booster thrust RL-10 engines

engines, one 12 small hydrogen266,893-N (60,000- peroxide thrusters.lb.) thrust sus-tainer engine, two2,891-N (650-1L.)thrust vernier engires.Velocity 8,730 km/)ir (5,424 35,026 km/hrmph) at booster (21,764 mph) at

engine cutoff (BECO), spacecraft12,967 km/hr (8,071 separation.mph) at sustainerengine cutoff (SECO).Guidance Preprogrammed profile Inertial guidance.

through BECO. Switchto inertial guidancefor sustainer phase.

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LPAUNCH OPERATIONS

NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center is responsiblefor the preparation and launch of the Atlas Centaur AC-49which will carry FLTSATCOM into orbit.The Atlas and Centaur stages of the AC-49 launchvehicle arrived at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station inAugust and were erected on Pad A, Complex 36, that month.Following completion of electrical, pneumatic, hydraulic,propulsion and guidance system checkout and testing, aTerminal Countdown Demonstration Test was performed onOct. 31. The test demonstrated the integrity of thevehicle-to-ground systems interface in a cryogenic environ-ment which duplicated launch countdown conditions.The FLTSATCOM-C spacecraft was received Oct. 30 andunderwent systems checkout in Hangar AM. The spacecraftwas moved to the Spacecraft Assembly and EncapsulationFacility Nov. 15 for mating with its apogee kick motorand for loading of its hydrazine propellant.The spacecraft and payload fairing assembly weremated to the launch vehicle about a week later.All launch vehicle and pad operations during thelaunch countdown are conducted from the blockhouse atComplex 36 by a joint government-industry team.

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THE NASA FLTSATCOM TEAM

NASA HeadquartersGlynn S. Lunney Acting Associate Administrator

for Space TransportationSystems Operations

Joseph B. Mahon Director, ExpendableLaunch Vehicles

F. R. Schmidt Manager, Atlas CentaurLaunch Vehicle

Lewis Research CenterDr. John F. McCarthy, Jr. DirectorDr. Seymour C. Himmel Associate DirectorLawretuce J. Ross Director, Launch VehiclesJ. E. Patterson Chief, Vehicles Engineering

DivisionC. B. Wentworth Chief, Program Integration

DivisionKenneth A. Addms FLTSATCOM Mission Project

EngineerFrank L. Manning FLTSATCOM Vehicle Engineer

Kennedy Space CenterRichard G. Smith DirectorGeorge F. Page Director, Cargo OperationsJohn Gossett Chief, Centaur Operations

DivisionBarry Olton Spacecraft Coordinator

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