[Launch Alert] Dawn Rocket Launch (Corrected Copy)

Sun Mar 12 10:37:52 EST 2006

                             LAUNCH ALERT

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

				              2006 March 12 (Sunday) 07:36 PST
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                         DAWN ROCKET LAUNCH

A Pegasus rocket carrying a trio of NASA satellites is scheduled for
launch from a jumbo jet early this Tuesday. An L-1011 will ferry the
Pegasus XL from Vandenberg AFB to a drop point high above the Pacific
west-southwest of Monterey, California.

The rocket is slated for release at 06:02 PST on March 14 during a
launch window that extends from 05:57:21 to 07:19:50 PST. After a
brief free fall, the Pegasus' first stage rocket motor will ignite and
the vehicle will begin to climb as it follows a launch azimuth of
105.6 degrees. If all goes well, the rocket will insert the Space
Technology 5 (ST5) payload into a 186 by 2,796 mile polar orbit.

Once in orbit, ST5 will deploy three micro-satellites. The mission
will validate innovative technology to reduce risks to future science
missions. It will also demonstrate the ability of small satellites to
perform research-quality science by taking measurements of Earth's
magnetic field using highly sensitive magnetometers.

Assuming a launch early in the window, a weak visual display may be in
store for coastal southern California as sunlight illuminates the
rocket's exhaust plume during morning twilight. Since daylight Pegasus
launches are very difficult to see, Tuesday's event may not be visible
to observers located inland due to the sky brightness from the
approaching sunrise. The optimum viewing location will likely be
western Santa Barbara County.

NASA has scheduled the following programming in connection with this
mission:

- Sunday, March 12, 13:00 PST: NASA TV airs live prelaunch news
  conference from Vandenberg.

- Sunday, March 12, 16:00 PST: NASA Direct, the Kennedy Space Center
  Internet broadcasting network, prelaunch webcast from Vandenberg. It
  will include interviews with representatives from NASA's Goddard
  Space Flight Center and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Experts will
  also take part in a question-and-answer session discussing the
  goals, science, and technology involved in the mission.

- Tuesday, March 14, 04:30 PST: Kennedy's Virtual Launch Control
  Center provides launch day coverage featuring real-time countdown
  milestone updates, streaming video clips highlighting mission
  preparation, and launch activities.

To view ST5 launch and mission coverage on the Web, visit
www.nasa.gov/st5.

NASA TV's Public, Education and Media channels are available on an
MPEG-2 digital C-band signal accessed via satellite AMC-6, at 72
degrees west longitude, transponder 17C, 4040 MHz, vertical
polarization. In Alaska and Hawaii, they are on AMC-7 at 137 degrees
west longitude, transponder 18C, at 4060 MHz, horizontal polarization.
For digital downlink information, visit www.nasa.gov/ntv.

Launch Alert reader Steve Tivy (W6AND) reports that NASA TV is also
available on Dish TV channel 213 and Direct TV channel 376.

Launch coverage may also be available Tuesday morning from the
Spaceflight Now web site (www.spaceflightnow.com).

The editor prepared the above story from Air Force and NASA news
releases and other sources.

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                        E-MAIL CONSIDERATIONS

In the days leading up to a launch, I'm often very busy and have a
hard time answering questions via e-mail. Many questions about launch
viewing and photography can be answered by reading the following
pages:

   www.spacearchive.info/vafbview.htm

   www.spacearchive.info/vafbphoto.htm

Following a launch, I receive anywhere from a handful to literally
hundreds of e-mails. Just when I may be under a deadline and trying to
send an important e-mail, my e-mail access can be incapacitated by a
flood of incoming launch observations and photos.

To prevent any problems, I ask that you do the following:

   - Only send images that are of high quality

   - Send no more than three images

   - Do not send any photo, video, or other attachments larger than
     750 kB.

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			           TIME FORMAT

All times in this newsletter are given in Pacific Time using a 24-hour
format based on military time. Under this system, regular time is
expressed as follows:
                                            24-hour
		            Regular Time        Format
                    ---------------------   -------
		        12:00 a.m. (midnight)    00:00
		        6:00  a.m.		   06:00
		        12:00 p.m. (noon)        12:00
                    6:00  p.m.               18:00

No distinction is made between Pacific Standard Time and Pacific
Daylight Time.

For assistance in converting military time to regular time, go to:

	http://www.spacearchive.info/military.htm

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