[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 November 1 (Wednesday) 05:07 PST
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		       VANDENBERG AFB LAUNCH SCHEDULE
			      As of 2006 October 31

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

NOV 4			      05:53-06:03	        Delta IV        SLC-6
Payload is the DMSP F-17 military weather satellite.

DEC 7			      To be announced     Delta II        SLC-2W
Classified National Reconnaissance Office payload. The DoD will
announce the exact launch time several hours in advance. NROL-21

Late 2006-early 2007	To be announced     Interceptor     SLC-2W
An anti-missile interceptor will attempt to destroy a mock warhead
launched from Kodiak, Alaska. The DoD will announce the exact launch
time several hours in advance

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

NET MAR 15		      To be announced     Delta II        SLC-2W
Payload is the Missile Defense Agency's Block 2010 satellite

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

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	                   ASTRONOMICAL EVENTS
			          2006 November
                Computed for Los Angeles, California

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

NOV 5			04:58			Full Moon
Moon rises at sunset, sets at sunrise, and is visible all night

NOV 8			11:12-16:10		Mercury Transit
Mercury passes between the Earth and the Sun. Observers with the
proper equipment will be able to watch the planet cross the Sun's
disk. Danger! Do not directly observe this event unless you have
equipment certified for safe solar viewing.

NOV 8			13:31			Mercury Inferior Conjunction
Mercury passes between the Earth and the Sun and is lost in the Sun's
glare.

NOV 12		09:45			Last Quarter Moon
Moon rises at midnight and sets at noon

NOV 17		00:00-05:00		Leonid Meteor Shower
Observers in dark locations should see several meteors per hour. The
shower is predicted to peak on DEC 17 at 13:00 PST.

NOV 18-19		---			Dark Sky Weekend
Best time this month to observe faint objects. Amateur astronomers may
hold observing sessions at dark sites

NOV 20		14:18			New Moon
Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun and is invisible. Moon rises
at sunrise and sets at sunset

NOV 21		15:15			Jupiter Conjunction
Jupiter passes behind the Sun and is lost in the Sun's glare.

NOV 25		04:57			Mercury Western Elongation
Elusive Mercury attains its greatest angular separation from the Sun
and is visible low in the east at dawn.

NOV 27		22:29			First Quarter Moon
Moon rises at noon and sets at midnight

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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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Copyright © 2006 Brian Webb. All rights reserved. This newsletter may
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not be reprinted or posted elsewhere without prior permission.