Return-path: X-Andrew-Authenticated-as: 7997;andrew.cmu.edu;Ted Anderson Received: from beak.andrew.cmu.edu via trymail for +dist+/afs/andrew.cmu.edu/usr11/tm2b/space/space.dl@andrew.cmu.edu (->+dist+/afs/andrew.cmu.edu/usr11/tm2b/space/space.dl) (->ota+space.digests) ID ; Fri, 20 Oct 89 13:50:12 -0400 (EDT) Message-ID: Reply-To: space+@Andrew.CMU.EDU From: space-request+@Andrew.CMU.EDU To: space+@Andrew.CMU.EDU Date: Fri, 20 Oct 89 13:49:45 -0400 (EDT) Subject: SPACE Digest V10 #143 SPACE Digest Volume 10 : Issue 143 Today's Topics: STS-34 Press Kit [Part 1 of 3] [Revised] (Forwarded) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: 9 Oct 89 19:18:01 GMT From: trident.arc.nasa.gov!yee@ames.arc.nasa.gov (Peter E. Yee) Subject: STS-34 Press Kit [Part 1 of 3] [Revised] (Forwarded) [The NASA HQ newsroom informs me that the earlier version of the Press Kit they posted was mangled (I though it looked strange :-). Therefore, I'm posting a the cleaned-up, corrected version. -PEY] NASA SPACE SHUTTLE MISSION STS-34 PRESS KIT OCTOBER 1989 PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS Sarah Keegan/Barbara Selby Office of Space Flight NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C. Charles Redmond/Paula Cleggett-Haleim Office of Space Science and Applications NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C. Jim Ball Office of Commercial Programs NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C. Lisa Malone Kennedy Space Center, Fla. Kyle Herring Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas Jerry Berg Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala. Mack Herring Stennis Space Center, Bay St. Louis, Miss. Nancy Lovato Ames-Dryden Flight Research Facility, Edwards, Calif. Robert J. MacMillin Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Jim Elliott Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. Peter W. Waller Ames Research Center, Mountain View, Calif. CONTENTS GENERAL RELEASE GENERAL INFORMATION STS-34 QUICK LOOK LAUNCH PREPARATIONS, COUNTDOWN & LIFTOFF MAJOR COUNTDOWN MILESTONES TRAJECTORY SEQUENCE OF EVENTS SPACE SHUTTLE ABORT MODES SUMMARY OF MAJOR ACTIVITIES LANDING AND POST LANDING OPERATIONS GALILEO GALILEO MISSION EVENTS EARTH TO JUPITER VENUS FIRST EARTH PASS FIRST ASTEROID SECOND EARTH PASS SECOND ASTEROID APPROACHING JUPITER AT JUPITER The probe at Jupiter The orbiter at Jupiter SCIENTIFIC ACTIVITIES Spacecraft scientific activities Probe scientific activities Orbiter scientific activities GROUND SYSTEMS SPACECRAFT CHARACTERISTICS JUPITER'S SYSTEM WHY JUPITER INVESTIGATIONS ARE IMPORTANT GALILEO MANAGEMENT GALILEO ORBITER AND PROBE SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATIONS STS-34 INERTIAL UPPER STAGE (IUS-19) Specifications Airborne Support Equipment IUS Structure Equipment Support Section IUS Avionics Subsystems IUS Solid Rocket Motors Reaction Control System IUS to Spacecraft Interfaces Flight Sequence SHUTTLE SOLAR BACKSCATTER ULTRAVIOLET INSTRUMENT (SSBUV) GROWTH HORMONE CONCENTRATIONS AND DISTRIBUTION IN PLANTS POLYMER MORPHOLOGY STUDENT EXPERIMENT MESOSCALE LIGHTNING EXPERIMENT IMAX AIR FORCE MAUI OPTICAL SITE CALIBRATION TEST SENSOR TECHNOLOGY EXPERIMENT PAYLOAD AND VEHICLE WEIGHTS SPACEFLIGHT TRACKING AND DATA NETWORK STS-34 CARGO CONFIGURATION CREW BIOGRAPHIES NASA PROGRAM MANAGEMENT GENERAL RELEASE RELEASE: 89-151 SHUTTLE ATLANTIS TO DEPLOY GALILEO PROBE TOWARD JUPITER Space Shuttle mission STS-34 will deploy the Galileo planetary exploration spacecraft into low-Earth orbit starting Galileo on its journey to explore Jupiter. Galileo will be the second planetary probe deployed from the Shuttle this year following Atlantis' successful launch of Magellan toward Venus exploration in May. Following deployment about 6 hours after launch, Galileo will be propelled on a trajectory, known as Venus-Earth-Earth Gravity Assist (VEEGA) by an Air Force-developed, inertial upper stage (IUS). Galileo's trajectory will swing around Venus, the sun and Earth before Galileo makes it's way toward Jupiter. Flying the VEEGA track, Galileo will arrive at Venus in February 1990. During the flyby, Galileo will make measurements to determine the presence of lightning on Venus and take time-lapse photography of Venus' cloud circulation patterns. Accelerated by Venus' gravity, the spacecraft will head back to Earth. Enroute, Galileo will activate onboard remote-sensing equipment to gather near-infrared data on the composition and characteristics of the far side of Earth's moon. Galileo also will map the hydrogen distribution of the Earth's atmosphere. Acquiring additional energy from the Earth's gravitational forces, Galileo will travel on a 2-year journey around the sun spending 10 months inside an asteroid belt. On Oct. 29, 1991, Galileo wlll pass within 600 miles of the asteroid Gaspra. On the second Earth flyby in December 1992, Galileo will photograph the north pole of the moon in an effort to determine if ice exists. Outbound, Galileo will activate the time-lapse photography system to produce a "movie" of the moon orbiting Earth. Racing toward Jupiter, Galileo will make a second trek through the asteroid belt passing within 600 miles of asteroid Ida on Aug. 29, 1993. Science data gathered from both asteroid encounters will focus on surface geology and composition. Five months prior to the Dec. 7, 1995, arrival at Jupiter, Galileo's atmospheric probe, encased in an oval heat shield, will spin away from the orbiter at a rate of 5 revolutions per minute (rpm) and follow a ballistic trajectory aimed at a spot 6 degrees north of Jupiter's equator. The probe will enter Jupiter's atmosphere at a shallow angle to avoid burning up like a meteor or ricocheting off the atmosphere back into space. At approximately Mach 1 speed, the probe's pilot parachute will deploy, removing the deceleration module aft cover. Deployment of the main parachute will follow, pulling the descent module out of the aeroshell to expose the instrument-sensing elements. During the 75-minute descent into the Jovian atmosphere, the probe will use the orbiter to transmit data back to Earth. After 75 minutes, the probe will be crushed under the heavy atmospheric pressure. The Galileo orbiter will continue its primary mission, orbiting around Jupiter and four of its satellites, returning science data for the next 22 months. Galileo's scientific goals include the study of the chemical composition, state and dynamics of the Jovian atmosphere and satellites, and the investigation of the structure and physical dynamics of the powerful Jovian magnetosphere. Overall responsibility for management of the project, including orbiter development, resides at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The NASA Ames Research Center, Mountain View, Calif., manages the probe system. JPL built the 2,500-lb. spacecraft and Hughes Aircraft Co. built the 740-lb. probe. Modifications made to Galileo since flight postponement in 1986 include the addition of sunshields to the base and top of the antenna, new thermal control surfaces, blankets and heaters. Because of the extended length of the mission, the electrical circuitry of the thermoelectric generator has been revised to reduce power demand throughout the mission to assure adequate power supply for mission completion. Joining Galileo in the payload bay of Atlantis will be the Shuttle Solar Backscatter Ultraviolet (SSBUV) instrument. The SSBUV is designed to provide calibration of backscatter ultraviolet instruments currently being flown on free-flying satellites. SSBUV's primary objective is to check the calibration of the ozone sounders on satellites to verify the accuracy of the data set of atmospheric ozone and solar irradiance data. The SSBUV is contained in two Get Away Special canisters in the payload bay and weighs about 1219 lbs . One canister contains the SSBUV spectrometer and five supporting optical sensors. The second canister houses data, command and power systems. An interconnecting cable provides the communication link between the two canisters. Atlantis also will carry several secondary payloads involving radiation measurements, polymer morphology, lightning research, microgravity effects on plants and a student experiment on ice crystal growth in space. Commander of the 31st Shuttle mission is Donald E. Williams, Captain, USN. Michael J. McCulley, Commander, USN, is Pilot. Williams flew as Pilot of mission STS 51-D in April 1985. McCulley will be making his first Shuttle flight. Mission Specialists are Shannon W. Lucid, Ph.D.; Franklin R. Chang-Diaz, Ph.D.; and Ellen S. Baker, M.D. Lucid previously flew as a Mission Specialist on STS 51-G in June 1985. Chang-Diaz flew as a Mission Specialist on STS 61-C in January 1986. Baker is making her first Shuttle flight. Liftoff of the fifth flight of orbiter Atlantis is scheduled for 1:29 p.m. EDT on Oct. 12 from Kennedy Space Center, Fla., launch pad 39-B, into a 160-nautical-mile, 34.3-degree orbit. Nominal mission duration is 5 days, 2 hours, 45 minutes. Deorbit is planned on orbit 81, with landing scheduled for 4:14 p.m. EDT on Oct. 17 at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Liftoff on Oct. 12 could occur during a 10-minute period. The launch window grows each day reaching a maximum of 47 minutes on Nov. 2. The window then decreases each day through the remainder of the launch opportunity which ends Nov. 21. The window is dictated by the need for a daylight landing opportunity at the trans-Atlantic landing abort sites and the performance constraint of Galileo's inertial upper stage. After landing at Edwards AFB, Atlantis will be towed to the NASA Ames-Dryden Flight Research Facility, hoisted atop the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft and ferried back to the Kennedy Space Center to begin processing for its next flight. GENERAL INFORMATION NASA Select Television Transmission NASA Select television is available on Satcom F-2R, Transponder 13, C-band located at 72 degrees west longitude, frequency 3960.0 MHz, vertical polarization, audio monaural 6.8 MHz. The schedule for tv transmissions from the orbiter and for the change-of-shift briefings from Johnson Space Center, Houston, will be available during the mission at Kennedy Space Center, Fla.; Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala.; Johnson Space Center; and NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C. The schedule will be updated daily to reflect changes dictated by mission operations. TV schedules also may be obtained by calling COMSTOR, 713/483-5817. COMSTOR is a computer data base service requiring the use of a telephone modem. Voice updates of the TV schedule may be obtained by dialing 202/755-1788. This service is updated daily at noon EDT. Special Note to Broadcasters In the 5 workdays before launch, short sound bites of astronaut interviews with the STS-34 crew will be available to broadcasters by calling 202/755-1788 between 8 a.m. and noon EDT. Status Reports Status reports on countdown and mission progress, on-orbit activities and landing operations will be produced by the appropriate NASA news center. Briefings An STS-34 mission press briefing schedule will be issued prior to launch. During the mission, flight control personnel will be on 8-hour shifts. Change-of-shift briefings by the off-going flight director will occur at approximately 8-hour intervals. STS-34 QUICK LOOK Launch Date: Oct. 12, 1989 Launch Window: 1:29 p.m. - 1:39 p.m. EDT Launch Site: Kennedy Space Center, Fla., Pad 39B Orbiter: Atlantis (OV-104) Altitude: 160 nm Inclination: 34.30 degrees Duration: 5 flight days Landing Date/Time: Oct. 17, 1989, 4:14 p.m. EDT Primary Landing Site: Edwards AFB, Calif. Abort Landing Sites: Return to Launch Site - Kennedy Space Center, Fla. Transoceanic Abort Landing - Ben Guerir, Morocco Abort Once Around - Edwards AFB, Calif. Crew: Donald E. Williams, Commander Michael J. McCulley, Pilot Shannon W. Lucid, Mission Specialist Ellen S. Baker, Mission Specialist Franklin R. Chang-Diaz, Mission Specialist Cargo Bay Payloads: Galileo spacecraft to Jupiter (primary payload) Shuttle Solar Backscatter Ultraviolet (SSBUV) Middeck Payloads: Growth Hormone Concentration & Distribution in Plants (GHCD) Mesoscale Lightning Experiment (MLR) Polymer Morphology (PM) Sensor Technology Experiment (STEX) LAUNCH PREPARATIONS, COUNTDOWN AND LIFTOFF Processing activities began on Atlantis for the STS-34 mission on May 16 when Atlantis was towed to Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) bay 2 after arrival from NASA's Ames-Dryden Flight Research Facility in California. STS-30 post-flight deconfiguration and inspections were conducted in the processing hangar. As planned, the three main engines were removed the last week of May and taken to the main engine shop in the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) for the replacement of several components including the high pressure oxidizer turbopumps. The engines were reinstalled the first week of July, while the ship was in the OPF. Engine 2027 is installed in the number one position, engine 2030 is in the number two position and engine 2029 is in the number three position. The right hand Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS) pod was removed in mid-June for repairs. A propellant tank needed for Atlantis' pod was scheduled for delivery too late to support integrated testing. As a result, Discovery's right pod was installed on Atlantis about 2 weeks later. The left OMS pod was removed July 9 and reinstalled 2 1/2 weeks later. Both pods had dynatubes and helium isolation valve repairs in the Hypergolic Maintenance Facility. About 34 modifications have been implemented since the STS-30 mission. One significant modification is a cooling system for the radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTG). The RTG fuel is plutonium dioxide which generates heat as a result of its normal decay. The heat is converted to energy and used to provide electrical power for the Galileo spacecraft. A mixture of alcohol and water flows in the special cooling system to lower the RTG case temperature and maintain a desired temperature to the payload instrumentation in the vicinity of the RTGs. These cooling lines are mounted on the port side of the orbiter from the aft compartment to a control panel in bay 4. Another modification, called "flutter buffet," features special instrumentation on the vertical tail and right and left outboard elevons. Ten accelerometers were added to the vertical tail and one on each of the elevons. These instruments are designed to measure in-flight loads on the orbiter's structure. Atlantis is the only vehicle that will be equipped with this instrumentation. Improved controllers for the water spray boilers and auxiliary power units were installed. Other improvements were made to the orbiter's structure and thermal protection system, mechanical systems, propulsion system and avionics system. Stacking of solid rocket motor (SRM) segments for flight began with the left aft booster on Mobile Launcher Platform 1 in the VAB on June 15. Booster stacking operations were completed by July 22 and the external tank was mated to the two boosters on July 30. Flight crew members performed the Crew Equipment Interface Test on July 29 to become familiar with Atlantis' crew compartment, vehicle configuration and equipment associated with the mission. The Galileo probe arrived at the Spacecraft Assembly and Encapsulation Facility (SAEF) 2 on April 17 and the spacecraft arrived on May 16. While at SAEF-2, the spacecraft and probe were joined and tested together to verify critical connections. Galileo was delivered to the Vertical Processing Facility (VPF) on Aug. 1. The Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) was delivered to the VPF on July 30. The Galileo/IUS were joined together on Aug. 3 and all integrated testing was performed during the second week of August. The Shuttle Solar Backscatter Ultraviolet (SSBUV) experiment, contained in two Get Away Special (GAS) canisters, was mounted on a special GAS beam in Atlantis' payload bay on July 24. Interface verification tests were performed the next day. Atlantis was transferred from the OPF to the VAB on Aug. 21, where it was mated to the external tank and SRBs. A Shuttle Interface Test was conducted in the VAB to check the mechanical and electrical connections between the various elements of the Shuttle vehicle and onboard flight systems. The assembled Space Shuttle vehicle was rolled out of the VAB aboard its mobile launcher platform for the 4.2 mile trip to Launch Pad 39-B on Aug. 29. Galileo and its IUS upper stage were transferred from the VPF to Launch Pad 39-B on Aug. 25. The payload was installed in Atlantis' payload bay on Aug. 30. The payload interface verification test was planned for Sept. 7 to verify connections between the Shuttle and the payload. An end-to-end test was planned for Sept. 8 to verify communications between the spacecraft and ground controllers. Testing of the IUS was planned about 2 weeks prior to launch in parallel with Shuttle launch preparations. A Countdown Demonstration Test, a dress rehearsal for the STS-34 flight crew and KSC launch team, is designed as a practice countdown for the launch. At press time, it was planned for Sept. 14 and 15. One of the unique STS-34 processing milestones planned was a simulation exercise for the installation of the RTGs. Simulated RTGs were to be used in the 2-day event scheduled within the first week after Atlantis arrives at the launch pad. The test is designed to give workers experience for the installation of the RTGs, a first in the Shuttle program. In addition, access requirements will be identified and procedures will be verified. Another test scheduled at the pad is installation of the flight RTGs and an associated test and checkout of the RTG cooling system planned for the third week of September. This test will verify the total RTG cooling system and connections. The RTGs will be removed at the completion of the 3-day cooling system test and returned to the RTG facility. The two flight RTGs will be reinstalled on the spacecraft 6 days before launch. Launch preparations scheduled the last 2 weeks prior to launch countdown include final vehicle ordnance activities, such as power-on stray-voltage checks and resistance checks of firing circuits; loading the fuel cell storage tanks; pressurizing the hypergolic propellant tanks aboard the vehicle; final payload closeouts; and a final functional check of the range safety and SRB ignition, safe and arm devices. The launch countdown is scheduled to pick up at the T-minus 43-hour mark, leading up to the STS-34 launch. Atlantis' fifth launch will be conducted by a joint NASA/industry team from Firing Room 1 in the Launch Control Center. MAJOR COUNTDOWN MILESTONES Countdown Event T-43 Hours Power up Space Shuttle vehicle. T-34 Hours Begin orbiter and ground support equipment closeouts for launch. T-30 Hours Activate orbiter's navigation aids. T-27 Hours (holding) Enter first built-in hold for 8 hours. T-27 Hours (counting) Begin preparations for loading fuel cell storage tanks with liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen reactants. T-25 Hours Load orbiter's fuel cell tanks with liquid oxygen. T-22 Hours, 30 minutes Load orbiter's fuel cell tanks with liquid hydrogen. T-22 Hours Perform interface check between Houston Mission Control and Merritt Island Launch Area (MILA) tracking station. T-20 Hours Activate and warm up inertial measurement units (IMU). T-19 Hours (holding) Enter 8-hour built-in hold. Activate orbiter communications system. T-19 hours (counting) Resume countdown. Continue preparations to load external tank, orbiter closeouts and preparations to move the Rotating Service Structure (RSS). T-11 Hours (holding) Start 14-hour, 40 minute built-in hold. Perform orbiter ascent switch list in orbiter flight and middecks. T-11 Hours (counting) Retract RSS from vehicle to launch position. T-9 Hours Activate orbiter's fuel cells. T-8 Hours Configure Mission Control communications for launch. Start clearing blast danger area. T-6 Hours, 30 minutes Perform Eastern Test Range open loop command test. T-6 Hours (holding) Enter 1-hour built-in hold. Receive management "go" for tanking. T-6 Hours (counting) Start external tank chilldown and propellant loading. T-5 Hours Start IMU pre-flight calibration. T-4 Hours Perform MILA antenna alignment. T-3 Hours (holding) 2-hour built-in hold begins. Loading of external tank is complete and in a stable replenish mode. Ice team goes to pad for inspections. Closeout crew goes to white room to begin preparing orbiter's cabin for flight crew's entry. Wake flight crew (launch minus 4 hours, 55 minutes). T-3 Hours (counting) Resume countdown. T-2 Hours, 55 minutes Flight crew departs O&C Building for Launch Pad 39-B (Launch minus 3 hours,15 minutes). T-2 Hours, 30 minutes Crew enters orbiter vehicle (Launch minus 2 Hours, 50 minutes). T-60 minutes Start pre-flight alignment of IMUs. T-20 minutes (holding) 10-minute built-in hold begins. T-20 minutes (counting) Configure orbiter computers for launch. T-10 minutes White room closeout crew cleared through launch danger area roadblocks. T-9 minutes (holding) 40-minute built-in hold begins. Perform status check and receive Launch Director and Mission Management Team "go." T-9 minutes (counting) Start ground launch sequencer. T-7 minutes, 30 seconds Retract orbiter access arm. T-5 minutes Pilot starts auxiliary power units. Arm range safety, solid rocket booster (SRB) ignition systems. T-3 minutes, 30 seconds Orbiter goes on internal power. T-2 minutes, 55 seconds Pressurize liquid oxygen tank for flight and retract gaseous oxygen vent hood. T-1 minute, 57 seconds Pressurize liquid hydrogen tank. T-31 seconds "Go" from ground computer for orbiter computers to start the automatic launch sequence. T-28 seconds Start SRB hydraulic power units. T-21 seconds Start SRB gimbal profile test. T-6.6 seconds Main engine start. T-3 seconds Main engines at 90 percent thrust. T-0 SRB ignition, holddown post release and liftoff. T+7 seconds Shuttle clears launch tower and control switches to JSC. Note: This countdown timeline may be adjusted in real time as necessary. TRAJECTORY SEQUENCE OF EVENTS ____________________________________________________________________________ RELATIVE EVENT MET VELOCITY MACH ALTITUDE (d:h:m:s) (fps) (ft.) Launch 00/00:00:00 Begin Roll Maneuver 00/00:00:09 165 .15 627 End Roll Maneuver 00/00:00:17 374 .33 2,898 SSME Throttle Down to 65% 00/00:00:34 833 .75 11,854 Max. Dyn. Pressure (Max Q) 00/00:00:52 1,260 1.2 28,037 SSME Throttle Up to 104% 00/00:01:01 1,499 1.49 38,681 SRB Staging 00/00:02:04 4,316 3.91 153,873 Negative Return 00/00:03:54 6,975 7.48 317,096 Main Engine Cutoff (MECO) 00/00:08:27 24,580 22.41 366,474 Zero Thrust 00/00:08:33 24,596 22.17 368,460 ET Separation 00/00:08:45 OMS 2 Burn 00/00:39:48 Galileo/IUS Deploy (orbit 5) 00/06:21:36 Deorbit Burn (orbit 81) 05/01:45:00 Landing (orbit 82) 05/02:45:00 Apogee, Perigee at MECO: 157 x 39 nm Apogee, Perigee post-OMS 2: 161 x161 nm Apogee, Perigee post deploy: 177 x161 nm SPACE SHUTTLE ABORT MODES Space Shuttle launch abort philosophy aims toward safe and intact recovery of the flight crew, orbiter and its payload. Abort modes include: * Abort-To-Orbit (ATO) -- Partial loss of main engine thrust late enough to permit reaching a minimal 105-nautical mile orbit with orbital maneuvering system engines. * Abort-Once-Around (AOA) -- Earlier main engine shutdown with the capability to allow one orbit around before landing at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif.; White Sands Space Harbor (Northrup Strip), N.M.; or the Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF) at Kennedy Space Center (KSC), Fla. * Trans-Atlantic Abort Landing (TAL) -- Loss of two main engines midway through powered flight would force a landing at Ben Guerir, Morocco; Moron, Spain; or Banjul, The Gambia. * Return-To-Launch-Site (RTLS) -- Early shutdown of one or more engines and without enough energy to reach Ben Guerir, would result in a pitch around and thrust back toward KSC until within gliding distance of the SLF. STS-34 contingency landing sites are Edwards AFB, White Sands, KSC, Ben Guerir, Moron and Banjul. SUMMARY OF MAJOR ACTIVITIES Day One Ascent Post-insertion checkout Pre-deploy checkout Galileo/Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) deploy Detailed Secondary Objective (DSO) Polymer Morphology (PM) Sensor Technology Experiment (STEX) activation Day Two Galileo/IUS backup deploy opportunity DSO IMAX PM Shuttle Solar Backscatter Ultraviolet (SSBUV) activation Shuttle Student Involvement Program (SSIP) Day Three DSO IMAX Mesoscale Lightning Experiment (MLE) PM Day Four DSO IMAX MLE PM SSBUV deactivation Day Five DTO/DSO GHCD operations PM STEX deactivation Flight control systems (FCS) checkout Cabin stow Landing preparations Day Six PM stow Deorbit preparation Deorbit burn Landing at Edwards AFB LANDING AND POST LANDING OPERATIONS Kennedy Space Center, Fla., is responsible for ground operations of the orbiter once it has rolled to a stop on the runway at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Those operations include preparing the Shuttle for the return trip to Kennedy. After landing, the flight crew aboard Atlantis begins "safing" vehicle systems. Immediately after wheel stop, specially garbed technicians will first determine that any residual hazardous vapors are below significant levels for other safing operations to proceed. A mobile white room is moved into place around the crew hatch once it is verified that there are no concentrations of toxic gases around the forward part of the vehicle. The flight crew is expected to leave Atlantis about 45 to 50 minutes after landing. As the crew exits, technicians enter the orbiter to complete the vehicle safing activity. Once the initial aft safety assessment is made, access vehicles are positioned around the rear of the orbiter so that lines from the ground purge and cooling vehicles can be connected to the umbilical panels on the aft end of Atlantis. Freon line connections are completed and coolant begins circulating through the umbilicials to aid in heat rejection and protect the orbiter's electronic equipment. Other lines provide cooled, humidified air to the payload bay and other cavities to remove any residual fumes and provide a safe environment inside Atlantis. A tow tractor will be connected to Atlantis and the vehicle will be pulled off the runway at Edwards and positioned inside the Mate/Demate Device (MDD) at nearby Ames-Dryden Flight Research Facility. After the Shuttle has been jacked and leveled, residual fuel cell cryogenics are drained and unused pyrotechnic devices are disconnected prior to returning the orbiter to Kennedy. The aerodynamic tail cone is installed over the three main engines, and the orbiter is bolted on top of the 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft for the ferry flight back to Florida. Pending completion of planned work and favorable weather conditions, the 747 would depart California about 6 days after landing for the cross-country ferry flight back to Florida. A refueling stop is necessary to complete the journey. Once back at Kennedy, Atlantis will be pulled inside the hangar-like facility for post-flight inspections and in-flight anomaly troubleshooting. These operations are conducted in parallel with the start of routine systems reverification to prepare Atlantis for its next mission. GALILEO Galileo is a NASA spacecraft mission to Jupiter to study the planet's atmosphere, satellites and surrounding magnetosphere. It was named for the Italian renaissance scientist who discovered Jupiter's major moons by using the first astronomical telescope. This mission will be the first to make direct measurements from an instrumented probe within Jupiter's atmosphere and the first to conduct long-term observations of the planet and its magnetosphere and satellites from orbit around Jupiter. It will be the first orbiter and atmospheric probe for any of the outer planets. On the way to Jupiter, Galileo also will observe Venus, the Earth-moon system, one or two asteroids and various phenomena in interplanetary space. Galileo will be boosted into low-Earth orbit by the Shuttle Atlantis and then boosted out of Earth orbit by a solid rocket Inertial Upper Stage. The spacecraft will fly past Venus and twice by the Earth, using gravity assists from the planets to pick up enough speed to reach Jupiter. Travel time from launch to Jupiter is a little more than 6 years. In December 1995, the Galileo atmospheric probe will conduct a brief, direct examination of Jupiter's atmosphere, while the larger part of the craft, the orbiter, begins a 22-month, 10-orbit tour of major satellites and the magnetosphere, including long-term observations of Jupiter throughout this phase. The 2-ton Galileo orbiter spacecraft carries 9 scientific instruments. There are another six experiments on the 750-pound probe. The spacecraft radio link to Earth serves as an additional instrument for scientific measurements. The probe's scientific data will be relayed to Earth by the orbiter during the 75-minute period while the probe is descending into Jupiter's atmosphere. Galileo will communicate with its controllers and scientists through NASAUs Deep Space Network, using tracking stations in California, Spain and Australia. GALILEO MISSION EVENTS Launch Window (Atlantis and IUS).....................Oct. 12 to Nov. 21, 1989 (Note: for both asteroids, closes in mid-October) Venus flyby ( 9,300 mi).............................*Feb. 9, 1990 Venus data playback..................................Oct. 1990 Earth 1 flyby ( about 600 mi).......................*Dec. 8, 1990 Asteroid Gaspra flyby (600 mi)......................*Oct. 29, 1991 Earth 2 flyby (200 mi)..............................*Dec. 8, 1992 Asteroid Ida flyby (600 mi).........................*Aug. 28, 1993 Probe release........................................July 1995 Jupiter arrival......................................Dec. 7, 1995 (includes Io flyby, probe entry and relay, Jupiter orbit insertion) Orbital tour of Galilean satellites Dec '95-Oct '97 *Exact dates may vary according to actual launch date EARTH TO JUPITER Galileo will make three planetary encounters in the course of its gravity-assisted flight to Jupiter. These provide opportunities for scientific observation and measurement of Venus and the Earth-moon system. The mission also has a chance to fly close to one or two asteroids, bodies which have never been observed close up, and obtain data on other phenomena of interplanetary space. Scientists are currently studying how to use the Galileo scientific instruments and the limited ability to collect, store and transmit data during the early phase of flight to make the best use of these opportunities. Instruments designed to observe Jupiter's atmosphere from afar can improve our knowledge of the atmosphere of Venus and sensors designed for the study of Jupiter's moons can add to our information about our own moon. VENUS The Galileo spacecraft will approach Venus early in 1990 from the night side and pass across the sunlit hemisphere, allowing observation of the clouds and atmosphere. Both infrared and ultraviolet spectral observations are planned, as well as several camera images and other remote measurements. The search for deep cloud patterns and for lightning storms will be limited by the fact that all the Venus data must be tape-recorded on the spacecraft for playback 8 months later. The spacecraft was originally designed to operate between Earth and Jupiter, where sunlight is 25 times weaker than at Earth and temperatures are much lower. The VEEGA mission will expose the spacecraft to a hotter environment from Earth to Venus and back. Spacecraft engineers devised a set of sunshades to protect the craft. For this system to work, the front end of the spacecraft must be aimed precisely at the Sun, with the main antenna furled for protection from the Sun's rays until after the first Earth flyby in December 1990. This precludes the use of the Galileo high-gain antenna and therefore, scientists must wait until the spacecraft is close to Earth to receive the recorded Venus data, transmitted through a low-gain antenna. FIRST EARTH PASS Approaching Earth for the first time about 14 months after launch, the Galileo spacecraft will observe, from a distance, the nightside of Earth and parts of both the sunlit and unlit sides of the moon. After passing Earth, Galileo will observe Earth's sunlit side. At this short range, scientific data are transmitted at the high rate using only the spacecraft's low-gain antennas. The high-gain antenna is to be unfurled like an umbrella, and its high-power transmitter turned on and checked out, about 5 months after the first Earth encounter. FIRST ASTEROID Nine months after the Earth passage and still in an elliptical solar orbit, Galileo will enter the asteroid belt, and two months later, will have its first asteroid encounter. Gaspra is believed to be a fairly representative main-belt asteroid, about 10 miles across and probably similar in composition to stony meteorites. The spacecraft will pass within about 600 miles at a relative speed of about 18,000 miles per hour. It will collect several pictures of Gaspra and make spectral measurements to indicate its composition and physical properties. SECOND EARTH PASS Thirteen months after the Gaspra encounter, the spacecraft will have completed its 2-year elliptical orbit around the Sun and will arrive back at Earth. It will need a much larger ellipse (with a 6-year period) to reach as far as Jupiter. The second flyby of Earth will pump the orbit up to that size, acting as a natural apogee kick motor for the Galileo spacecraft. Passing about 185 miles above the surface, near the altitude at which it had been deployed from the Space Shuttle almost three years earlier, Galileo will use Earth's gravitation to change the spacecraft's flight direction and pick up about 8,000 miles per hour in speed. Each gravity-assist flyby requires about three rocket-thrusting sessions, using Galileo's onboard retropropulsion module, to fine-tune the flight path. The asteroid encounters require similar maneuvers to obtain the best observing conditions. Passing the Earth for the last time, the spacecraft's scientific equipment will make thorough observations of the planet, both for comparison with Venus and Jupiter and to aid in Earth studies. If all goes well, there is a good chance that Galileo will enable scientists to record the motion of the moon about the Earth while the Earth itself rotates. SECOND ASTEROID Nine months after the final Earth flyby, Galileo may have a second asteroid-observing opportunity. Ida is about 20 miles across. Like Gaspra, Ida is believed to represent the majority of main-belt asteroids in composition, though there are believed to be differences between the two. Relative velocity for this flyby will be nearly 28,000 miles per hour, with a planned closest approach of about 600 miles. APPROACHING JUPITER Some 2 years after leaving Earth for the third time and 5 months ------------------------------ End of SPACE Digest V10 #143 *******************