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K5ARH > SAREX 06.04.97 01:44l 73 Lines 2737 Bytes #-10585 (0) @ AMSAT
BID : STS-83.002
Read: DF3DB GUEST OE7FMI
Subj: STS-83 SAREX Bulletin Number 2
Path: DB0AAB<DB0KCP<DB0ULM<DB0LX<DB0ZKA<DB0ABH<DB0SRS<DB0MW<DB0AIS<DB0NDK<
DB0ACH<ON4RAT<ON1ANR<ON6AR<F6CNB<K5ARH
Sent: 970405/2100z @:K5ARH.#LFT.LA.USA.NOAM #:4726 $:sts-83.002
Silver Spring, Maryland USA
April 5, 1997 @ 1847 UTC
Columbia Begins SAREX Operations
The STS-83 crew will spend more than two weeks studying the properties
of combustion and the behavior of metals, materials and fluids in the
absence of gravity. The astronauts are split into red and blue teams,
each working a 12-hour shift, to allow around-the-clock operations in
the pressurized Spacelab science module in Columbia's cargo bay.
The red team members of STS-83, Commander Jim Halsell and Pilot Susan
Still along with Mission Specialist Don Thomas and Payload Specialist
Greg Linteris have been busy continuing the payload activation process
begun by their blue team counterparts as the research efforts of the
first Microgravity Science Laboratory-1 (MSL-1) mission get into full
swing.
The SAREX test pass went very well. Don Thomas, KC5FVF, was at the
mike. Near the end of the test pass Don tried some general QSOs.
NASA flight managers are monitoring closely a fuel cell problem
which could have the potential of cutting short the mission. Any
significant development on this concerning SAREX will be announced
in an upcoming SAREX Working Group bulletin.
Columbia continues to circle the Earth in a 187 x 184 s.m. orbit,
completing one full revolution of the Earth every 90 minutes.
Satellite tracking software for one's personal computer is available
from a number of sources, including the Web site:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/catalog/software.html
Here is the current orbital element set for those who are tracking
the orbiter Columbia.
STS-83
1 24755U 97013A 97095.04453759 .00039131 00000-0 11921-3 0 9040
2 24755 28.4670 312.0225 0003182 334.3681 25.6938 15.90168259 53
Satellite: STS-83
Catalog number: 24755
Epoch time: 97095.04453759 = yrday.fracday
Element set: 904
Inclination: 28.4670 deg
RA of node: 312.0225 deg
Eccentricity: .0003182
Arg of perigee: 334.3681 deg
Mean anomaly: 25.6938 deg
Mean motion: 15.90168259 rev/day
Decay rate: 3.91310E-04 rev/day^2
Epoch rev: 5
Checksum: 307
This vector is valid for prediction purposes until April 6, 12:00 UTC.
Lift off time (UTC) : 1997/ 94:19:20:31.9830
Thank you to John Nickel, WD5EEV, in Houston for AMSAT, for items
included in this bulletin.
[Radio amateurs are encouraged to relay these SAREX bulletins to
their local packet BBS as long as the Bulletin IDentification (BID)
is preserved. The BID is the character string beginning with the
dollar sign ($), for example as in "SB SAREX @ AMSAT $STS-83.002"
without the quotation marks.]
Submitted by Pat Kilroy, WD8LAQ for Frank H. Bauer, KA3HDO and the
SAREX Working Group.
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