[Launch Alert] Vandenberg AFB Launch Schedule

[Brian Webb]

                             LAUNCH ALERT

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

				            2006 December 1 (Friday) 18:36 PST
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		       VANDENBERG AFB LAUNCH SCHEDULE
		           As of 2006 November 30

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

DEC 14	   12:00-17:00		Delta II		   SLC-2W
Classified National Reconnaissance Office payload. Note that
12:00-17:00 is the launch period, a large time block within which the
launch window falls. The DoD will announce the exact launch time
several hours in advance. NROL-21

NET FEB	   To be announced	Minuteman III	   ---
ICBM test launch (non-orbital). Payload is one or more unarmed
warheads. Impact area is probably the Reagan Test Site at Kwajalein in
the central Pacific. The Air Force will announce the launch window a
few days in advance. GT-193GM

Spring	   To be announced	GBI			   ---
An anti-missile interceptor launched from Vandenberg AFB will attempt
to intercept a mock warhead launched from Kodiak, Alaska. This test is
very similar to the test conducted on 2006 SEP 1. The DoD will
announce the exact launch time several hours in advance

NET MAR 29	   Mid-day?			Pegasus XL		   Offshore
Vehicle will be air-dropped from an L-1011 jumbo jet staged from
Vandenberg AFB. Payload is the AIM scientific satellite

APR 3		   To be announced	Atlas V		   SLC-3E
Classified National Reconnaissance Office payload. The DoD will
announce the exact launch time several hours in advance. NROL-28

NET MAY 31	   To be announced	Delta II		   SLC-2W
Payload is the Missile Defense Agency's Block 2010 satellite

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	                   ASTRONOMICAL EVENTS
			          2006 December
                Computed for Los Angeles, California

		        Time
  Date		(PST/PDT)		            Event
--------		---------		-----------------------------

DEC 4			16:25			Full Moon
Moon rises at sunset, sets at sunrise, and is visible all night

DEC 8-11		---			Planetary Conjunction
Jupiter, Mercury, and Mars will be closely grouped low in the eastern
sky at dawn

DEC 10		03:00			Lunar Conjunction
The Moon passes 1.2° north of Saturn. Time of closest approach and
separation computed for the Earth's center and may vary significantly
depending on you location

DEC 12		06:32			Last Quarter Moon
Moon rises at midnight and sets at noon

DEC 14		00:00-05:20		Geminid Meteor Shower
Observers in dark locations should see several meteors per hour. The
shower is predicted to peak on DEC 14 at 03:00 PST.

DEC 15		03:09			Lunar Conjunction
The Moon passes 0.8° north of Spica. Time of closest approach and
separation computed for the Earth's center and may vary significantly
depending on your location

DEC 16-17		---			Dark Sky Weekend
Best time this month to observe faint objects. Amateur astronomers may
hold observing sessions at dark sites

DEC 20		06:01			New Moon
Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun and is invisible. Moon rises
at sunrise and sets at sunset

DEC 23-24		---			Dark Sky Weekend
Best time this month to observe faint objects. Amateur astronomers may
hold observing sessions at dark sites

DEC 27		06:48			First Quarter Moon
Moon rises at noon and sets at midnight

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Copyright © 2006 Brian Webb. All rights reserved. This newsletter may
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