[Launch Alert] Corrected Copy: Vandenberg AFB Launch Schedule

Wed Feb 1 22:59:48 EST 2006

                             LAUNCH ALERT

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

				         2006 February 1 (Wednesday) 19:22 PST
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		       VANDENBERG AFB LAUNCH SCHEDULE
		            As of 2006 February 1

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

FEB 16	To be announced		Minuteman III	  LF-10
ICBM test launch (non-orbital). Payload is one unarmed Mark 21
warhead. Impact area is the Reagan Test Site at Kwajalein in the
central Pacific. The Air Force will announce the launch window a few
days in advance.

FEB 28	05:57:21-07:19:21		Pegasus XL		  Offshore
Payload is JPL's SpaceTech 5 microsatellites. Airborne launch with a
target drop time of 06:04 PST. Possible twilight effect because launch
window opens during morning twilight and payload will be placed in a
2,800-mile-high orbit.
NASA reports the mating of the three Pegasus XL stages was completed
in the Orbital Sciences hangar and SpaceTech 5 testing and checkout is
complete. Pegasus Flight Simulation No. 2 was scheduled for JAN 27.
The spacecraft is scheduled for mating with Pegasus on FEB 6.

MAR?		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 launch window a few
days in advance.

MAR 31	Unknown			Minotaur		  SLC-8
Payload is COSMIC and Taiwan's FORMOSAT-3 scientific satellites

APR-JUN	10:00-13:00?		Falcon I		  SLC-3W
Payload is the Naval Research Laboratory's TacSat-1 satellite. The
vehicle will carry the ashes of U.S. astronaut Gordon Cooper, Star
Trek actor James "Scotty" Doohan and several other people into space.
The launch window is fixed and does not change if the launch date
changes.

JUN?		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 launch window a few
days in advance.

JUL?		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 launch window a few
days in advance.

2006		To be announced		Delta IV		  SLC-6
Classified National Reconnaissance Office payload. The DoD will
announce the exact launch time several hours in advance. NRO L-22

2006		To be announced		Delta IV		  SLC-6
Payload is the DMSP F-17 military weather satellite

Pending	~02:00			Delta II		  SLC-2W
Payload is the CloudSat and CALIPSO environmental satellites.
NASA reports the satellites are installed in the Dual Payload Attach
Fitting at the Astrotech payload processing facilities. They will
remain there until a launch date is selected.

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	             	 ASTRONOMICAL EVENTS
			        for 2006 February
                Compiled for Los Angeles, California

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

FEB 4		22:29		First Quarter Moon
Moon rises at noon and sets at midnight

FEB 5		13:56		Lunar Conjunction The Moon passes 2.2°
north of Mars. Time of closest approach and separation computed for
the Earth's center and may vary significantly depending on your
location

FEB 6		00:56		Lunar Occultation
The Moon occults (passes in front of) the +3.0 magnitude star Alcyone.
Star disappears at 00:16. The reappearance is not visible. Time
computed for downtown Los Angeles and will vary depending on your
location

FEB 12	20:44		Full Moon
Moon rises at sunset, sets at sunrise, and is visible all night

FEB 20	23:17		Last Quarter Moon
Moon rises at midnight and sets at noon

FEB 23	21:04		Mercury Eastern Elongation
Elusive Mercury attains its greatest angular separation from the Sun
and is visible low in the west at dusk.

FEB 25-26	---		Dark Sky Weekend
Best time this month to observe faint objects. Amateur astronomers may
hold observing sessions at dark sites

FEB 27	16:31		New Moon
Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun and is invisible. Moon rises
at sunrise and sets at sunset

FEB 28	18:00		Uranus Conjunction
Uranus passes behind the Sun and is lost in the Sun's glare.

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                           WEB SITE UPDATE

You can now quickly search the entire contents of my Space Archive
web site thanks to a new search tool. To perform a site search, go to
www.spacearchive.info, locate the search tool in the lower left, and
enter the keywords (Minuteman III, etc.)

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		        STARDUST REENTRY OBSERVATIONS

This newsletter recently published Stardust reentry observations.
Reader Patrick Wiggins directed me to the following Stardust reentry
items on the Internet:

http://www.trilobyte.net/paw/slas/patrickw/PATRICKW04.HTML
http://www2.tooeletranscript.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=9970
http://www.sltrib.com/ci_3406719
http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/1%2C1249%2C635176685%2C00.html

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                         SUBMARINE LAUNCHES

In response to the Launch Alert discussion regarding the mysterious
submarine missile launch several years ago, Jim Baumgardt e-mailed me
some photos of the event. Jim was at the 1985 Riverside Telescope
Makers Conference and apparently had his camera set up as the launch
happened. From the looks of it, it was indeed an impressive dusk
display.

When I get some spare time, I'll try to post the images on my web
site.

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                       SPEAKING OF SPARE TIME

Long time Launch Alert readers have probably noticed that the content
and quality of this newsletter tends to wax and wane over time. The
primary reason is my lack of time due to other priorities.

To put it bluntly, I'm swamped. However, I hope to have a noted
astronomy writer occasionally helping me out with the web site and
newsletter in the not too distant future.

Depending on how things work out, I may be looking for an additional
compensated writer later this year.

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                         WHAT ARE THE ODDS?

Last Saturday I attended the wedding of Ben Okopnik and Kat Tanaka in
Torrance, Calif . (Ben and I are old friends from way back). When I
spoke to the bride, I was surprised to learn that she knows Launch
Alert readers Jim Spellman and Randall Clague.

Over dinner I talked with Heather Stern and Jim Dennis from northern
California. It turns out that they know Ian Kluft, another Launch
Alert reader.

There were also two brothers at the wedding. One performed the
ceremony and the other helped organize the event. It took a few hours,
but I realized that they were Rick and Larry Foss, two people I knew
from my high school graduating class (1974).

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