[Launch Alert] Vandenberg AFB Launch Schedule

Wed Jun 15 23:25:04 EDT 2005

                             LAUNCH ALERT

			            Brian Webb
		         Ventura County, California
		         E-mail: kd6nrp at earthlink.net
	         Web Site: http://www.spacearchive.info

				            2005 June 15 (Wednesday) 20:20 PDT
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		       VANDENBERG AFB LAUNCH SCHEDULE
			       As of 2005 June 15

This schedule is a composite of unclassified information approved for
public release from government, industry, and other sources. It is
essentially accurate at the time of publication, but may disagree with
other launch schedules. Details on military launches are withheld
until they are approved for public release.

			    Launch
			  Time/Window
  Date		   (PST/PDT)		 Vehicle		Pad/Silo
--------		---------------		----------		--------

JUL			Unknown			Minotaur		SLC-8
Payload is STP-R1 satellite

JUL?			To be announced		Peacekeeper		---
ICBM test launch (non-orbital). Payload is one or more unarmed
warheads. Impact area is the Reagan Test Site at Kwajalein in the
central Pacific. The Air Force will announce the date and launch
window about 36-hours in advance. This will be the last Peacekeeper
launch from Vandenberg AFB.

JUL 10		To be announced		Titan IV		SLC-4E
Classified National Reconnaissance Office payload. The DoD will
announce the launch time about 24-hours in advance.

NET AUG		10:00-13:00			Falcon I		SLC-3W
Payload is the Naval Research Laboratory's TacSat-1 satellite. The
launch window is fixed and does not change if the launch date changes.

AUG?			To be announced		Minuteman III	---
ICBM test launch (non-orbital). Payload is one or more unarmed
warheads. Impact area is the Reagan Test Site at Kwajalein in the
central Pacific. The Air Force will announce the date and launch
window about 36-hours in advance.

AUG 22		~03:00			Delta II		SLC-2W
Payload is the CloudSat and CALIPSO environmental satellites

AUG 30		To be announced		Delta IV		SLC-6
Classified National Reconnaissance Office payload. The DoD will
announce the launch time about 24-hours in advance. NRO L-22

SEP?			To be announced		Minuteman III	---
ICBM test launch (non-orbital). Payload is one or more unarmed
warheads. Impact area is the Reagan Test Site at Kwajalein in the
central Pacific. The Air Force will announce the date and launch
window about 36-hours in advance.

SEP 30		To be announced		Delta II		SLC-6
Classified National Reconnaissance Office payload. The DoD will
announce the launch time about 24-hours in advance. NRO L-21

DEC			Unknown			Minotaur		SLC-8
Payload is COSMIC satellite

DEC			To be announced		Delta IV		SLC-6
Payload is the DMSP F-17 military weather satellite

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                   PALOMAR OBSERVATORY OPEN HOUSE
                        CALTECH News Release

PALOMAR MOUNTAIN, Calif. -  The California Institute of Technology's
Palomar Observatory invites the public to share the wonders of
exploring the universe during its open house on Saturday, June 25,
from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Visitors will go behind the glass for an
insider's tour of the giant Hale Telescope.

Events at the open house will include tours of the 200-inch Hale and
60-inch telescopes, talks by Caltech and JPL astronomers, solar
observing (weather permitting), exhibits, prizes, and more.  For
those with interests outside of astronomy, rangers from the Cleveland
National Forest Service will be on hand to answer questions and the
Palomar Mountain Volunteer Fire Department will have a vintage 1929
fire truck on display.

Walking is required to reach many of the open house events but buses
and tour guides will take people to a number of the events at the
observatory.

Admission to the open house is free. Food and beverages will be
available for purchase, along with Palomar Observatory and astronomy
souvenirs.

The Palomar Observatory is located at 35899 Canfield Road on Palomar
Mountain. To reach Palomar, exit Interstate 15 at State Highway 76
eastbound. Twenty-five miles from the interchange, County Road S-6
exits to the left and climbs to the Palomar summit, ending at the
observatory gates. Parking will be limited. (Please note that there
are no service stations on Palomar Mountain. Visitors should check
their fuel before driving to the observatory.)

Directions and more information is available at
http://friendsofpalomarobservatory.org or by calling (760) 742-2111.

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             WEATHER SATELLITE DELIVERED TO LAUNCH SITE
                    Lockheed Martin News Release

VANDENBERG AFB, Calif. - The Defense Meteorological Satellite Program
(DMSP) F-17 Block 5D-3 spacecraft, built under contract for the U.S.
Air Force by Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company, Sunnyvale, Calif.,
has been delivered to Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., in
preparation for a December 2005 launch.

"We’re proud to have our second Block 5D-3 spacecraft at the launch
site," said Mike Gott, Lockheed Martin DMSP program director. "Our
partnership with the Air Force dates to the very beginning of the DMSP
program with a common goal of ensuring that commanders have access to
environmental data critical to the preparation and execution of
military operations."

The Block 5D-3 series accommodates larger sensor payloads than earlier
generations. They also feature a larger capability power subsystem; a
more powerful on-board computer with increased memory -- allowing
greater spacecraft autonomy -- and increased battery capacity that
extends the mean mission duration.

DMSP is used for strategic and tactical weather prediction to aid the
U.S. military in planning operations at sea, on land and in the air.
Equipped with a sophisticated sensor suite that can image visible and
infrared cloud cover, the satellite collects specialized
meteorological, oceanographic, and solar-geophysical information in
all weather conditions. The DMSP constellation comprises two
spacecraft in near-polar orbits, C3 (command, control and
communications), user terminals and weather centers. The most recent
launch of a DMSP spacecraft took place on October 18, 2003 from
Vandenberg Air Force Base. That launch marked the first of the Block
5D-3 satellites.

Including DMSP F-17, four satellites remain to be launched and are
maintained at Space Systems' operations in Sunnyvale, Calif. for
storage, functional testing, and upgrading. The spacecraft are shipped
to Vandenberg for launch when requested by the Air Force. Since 1965,
43 Lockheed Martin DMSP satellites have been launched successfully by
the U.S. Air Force. Now in its fourth decade of service, the DMSP has
proven itself to be a valuable tool in scheduling and protecting
military operations on land, at sea and in the air. The Space and
Missile Systems Center at Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif. manages
the DMSP program.

Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company, a major operating unit of
Lockheed Martin Corporation, designs, develops, tests, manufactures,
and operates a variety of advanced technology systems for military,
civil and commercial customers. Chief products include a full-range of
space launch systems, including heavy-lift capability, ground systems,
remote sensing and communications satellites for commercial and
government customers, advanced space observatories and interplanetary
spacecraft, fleet ballistic missiles and missile defense systems.

Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin Corporation employs
about 130,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the
research, design, development, manufacture and integration of advanced
technology systems, products and services. The corporation reported
2004 sales of $35.5 billion.

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