[Launch Alert] Tuesday Night Missile Launch

[Brian Webb]

                             LAUNCH ALERT

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

				              2007 March 19 (Monday) 18:08 PDT
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                    MINUTEMAN II LAUNCH SCHEDULED
                     Vandenberg AFB news release

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – A specially configured Minuteman
II intercontinental ballistic missile is scheduled to launch from
North Vandenberg’s Launch Facility-6 Tuesday to test the Missile
Defense Agency’s sensors.

Col. Teresa Djuric, 30th Space Wing vice commander, is the spacelift
commander for this launch. Representing MDA locally is Mr. Richard
Vernetti who is MDA’s target mission director.

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			          LAUNCH NOTES

Lift-off is probably scheduled to occur at, or shortly after, 20:30
PDT, the start of a multi-hour launch window. If the weather is clear,
the event should be visible to the naked eye over a wide area.

If the launch occurs early in the window, the vehicle might climb into
sunlight during the third stage burn. That would illuminate the
missile's exhaust plume, creating an impressive display visible in
California, Arizona, Nevada, and northern Mexico.

If the vehicle does not catch the sun's rays during the powered phase,
the event should be visible for a few hundred miles and resemble an
orange fireball or perhaps an orange or red star.

Since the launch is part of a sensitive missile defense test,
countdown status will probably be unavailable to the public.

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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. However, just when I may be under a deadline and
trying to send an important e-mail, I can be flooded with 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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Copyright © 2007 Brian Webb. All rights reserved. This newsletter may
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