[Launch Alert] Minuteman III Launched

Thu May 22 16:26:45 EDT 2008

                             LAUNCH ALERT

			            Brian Webb
		         Ventura County, California
		            kd6nrp at earthlink.net
	               http://www.spacearchive.info

				            2008 May 22 (Thursday) 13:14 PDT
----------------------------------------------------------------------

                  VANDENBERG LAUNCHES MINUTEMAN III
                     Vandenberg AFB News Release
                             2008 May 22

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. - A Minuteman III intercontinental
ballistic missile configured with a National Nuclear Security
Administration joint test assembly was launched at 3:04 a.m. today
from North Vandenberg.

The launch was an operational test to determine the weapon system's
reliability and accuracy.

The missile's single unarmed re-entry vehicle traveled approximately
5,250 miles before hitting its pre-determined target in a broad ocean
area 230 nautical miles southwest of Guam.

Col. Steve Tanous, 30th Space Wing commander, was the spacelift
commander.  Lt. Col. Lesa K. Toler, 576th Flight Test Squadron
commander, was the mission director for this test launch.

"This mission was unique in its use of the extended range assets from
the Navy's Mobile Instrumentation System on a T-AGS class ship"
Colonel Toler said.  "Inter-service coordination was phenomenal
resulting in a seamless operation and collection of the necessary
data for a successful test." 

The data collected will be used by the entire ICBM community,
including the United States Strategic Command planners, the System
Program Office at Hill AFB, Utah, and the NNSA/Department of Energy
laboratories: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories and Sandia
National Laboratories.

 "For the past 50 years Vandenberg has been at the forefront of
testing and improving American ballistic missiles," Colonel Tanous
said.  "Thanks to the hard work of the 30th SW and the 576th FLTS, we
continue a proud legacy of assuring the readiness and reliability our
ICBM fleet."

----------------------------------------------------------------------

                         LAUNCH OBSERVATIONS

Here are observations of this morning's launch from Launch Alert
readers:

                             Tony Lazar
                       San Carlos, California

I saw another spectacular Minuteman launch from my deck in the San
Carlos hills about 250 miles away. I have a perfect view of the entire
boost arc. Very impressive long orange flame with a nice first
staging - the booster flashed red-orange several times as it tumbled
after separation.

There was a big puff of gas at third-stage cut-off, followed by
another series of flashes as the last stage tumbled. I did a bit of
research on the puff of gas - it looks like the opening of the
precision cutoff ports that Ed Hall's team invented to abruptly cut
thrust at just the right moment for accuracy.

This launch missed the full Moon by about 2 degrees at my location,
only a few Moon diameters! Can you imagine the spectacular photo that
could be captured at just the right moment, with the rocket and plume
silhouetted against the Moon?

Next time I'll dust off the calculator and drive over to the right
spot.

                          Craig Milo Rogers
                           Marina del Rey

I observed what I think was the launch, from the east side of
Marina del Rey.  It appeared as a small red dot that rose in the
northwest and eventually hung in the sky a couple of hands or so above
the western horizon before dissapearing.  The time was approx. 0305.

----------------------------------------------------------------------