NATiONAL AERONAUTICS A N D SPACE AD$AlNlSTRATlON WO 2-4155

WASHINGTON,D .C A0546 TELS* wo 3-6925

FOR RELEASE: DAY

September 28, 1969

RELEASE NO: 69-138

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9/23/69
 September 28, 1969
RELEASE NO: 69-138

FOURTH ESRO SATELLITE TO BE LAUNCHED

A 176-pound s a t e l l i t e c a r r y i n g e i g h t e x p e r i m e n t s

t o s t u d y t h e p o l a r i o n o s p h e r e , t h e N o r t h e r n L i g h t s and
r e l a t e d phenomena, i s s c h e d u l e d t o b e launched by a f o u r -
stage S c o u t r o c k e t from t h e Western T e s t Range, C a l i f . ,

no e a r l i e r t h a n Oct. 1, 1 9 6 9 .

Called ESRO-lB, t h e European d e s i g n e d and b u i l t

s a t e l l i t e i s t h e f o u r t h i n a c o o p e r a t i v e program between
t h e European Space Research O r g a n i z a t i o n ( E S R O ) and t h e
N a t i o n a l A e r o n a u t i c s and Space A d m i n i s t r a t i o n (NASA).

The program i s c a r r i e d o u t under t e r m s o f a n agre-

ement s i g n e d by t h e two o r g a n i z a t i o n s i n December 1 9 6 6 ,

r e l a t i n g t o p r o v i d i n g ESRO w i t h l a u n c h i n g and a s s o c i a t e d
services.

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ESRO-IB i s a d u p l i c a t e or backup v e r s i o n of ESRO I-

Aurorae, a c o o p e r a t i v e ESRO/NASA p r o j e c t , which was succes-

s f u l l y launched i n t o a h i g h l y e l l i p t i c a l n e a r p o l a r o r b i t b y
" NASA on October 3, 1968, and i s s t i l l o p e r a t i n g .

The same complement o f e i g h t experiments--a series

o f h i g h - l a t i t u d e p a r t i c l e d e t e c t o r s , a u r o r a l photometers,
and Langrnuir p r o b e s - - i s b e i n g c a r r i e d on board ESRO-1B.

The e x p e r i m e n t s were p r o v i d e d b y t h e T e c h n i c a l

U n i v e r s i t y of Denmark; Kiruna Geophysical O b s e r v a t o r y ,

Sweden; t h e Radio and Space Research S t a t i o n , S l o u g h ,
England; t h e U n i v e r s i t y of Oslo, Norway; t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f
Bergen, Norway; t h e Norwegian Defense Research E s t a b l i s h -
ment; and t h e U n i v e r s i t y C o l l e g e , London, England.

The o r b i t planned f o r ESRO-1B i s n e a r - p o l a r , inclined

I"

86 d e g r e e s to t h e E q u a t o r , w i t h a n apogee o f 435 k i l o m e t e r s
( a b o u t 270 s t a t u t e m i l e s ) and a p e r i g e e o f 400 k i l o m e t e r s

( a b o u t 248 s t a t u t e m i l e s ) . O r b i t p e r i o d w i l l be 92 m i n u t e s .

S c i e n t i f i c measurements made by t h e ESRO-1B w i l l b e

c o n c e n t r a t e d o v e r N o r t h e r n Europe to e n a b l e c o r r e l a t i o n
between ground-based p o l a r i o n o s p h e r e o b s e r v a t i o n s and
measurements made s i m u l t a n e o u s l y w i t h sounding r o c k e t s
l a u n c h e d from t h e ESRO l a u n c h s i t e a t Kiruna, Sweden.

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Once i n j e c t e d i n t o o r b i t , t h e ESRO-ZB w i l l b e
de-spun by means o f a yo-yo s y s t e m t o a b o u t 1 RPM. Final

s t a b i l i z a t i o n w i l l o c c u r a b o u t 1 0 days a f t e r l a u n c h when
t h e s p a c e c r a f t l o c k s onto t h e E a r t h ' s magnetic f i e l d .

T h i s s t a b i l i z a t i o n i s a c h i e v e d b y means o f a p a i r of mag-
nets inside the satellite. To minimize o s c i l l a t i o n s , s l e n d e r
m a g n e t i c r o d s are a l s o mounted i n s i d e t h e s a t e l l i t e .

L i k e i t s p r e d e c e s s o r , ESRO-1B was b u i l t by t h e

L a b o r a t o i r e C e n t r a l d e Telecommunications, Paris, F r a n c e
I n a s s o c i a t i o n w i t h Contraves A.G., Z u r i c h , and B e l l T e l e -
phone M a n u f a c t u r i n g Company, Antwerp, u n d e r t h e d i r e c t i o n
of t h e European Space Technology C e n t e r (ESTEC), l o c a t e d
a t Noordwi j k , H o l l a n d .

The s a t e l l i t e w i l l b e t r a c k e d and i n t e r r o g a t e d b y

t h e European S a t e l l i t e T r a c k i n g , T e l e m e t r y and Telecommand

Network (ESTRACK). Tracking a s s i s t a n c e w i l l be provided

b y NASA's world-wide Space T r a c k i n g and Data A c q u i s i t i o n
Network (STADAN) o p e r a t e d b y t h e Goddard Space F l i g h t C e n t e r ,
and by t h e C e n t r e N a t i o n a l E t u d e s S p a t i a l e s (CNES), i n F r a n c e .

ESRO i s a ten-nation-member organization consisting of

Belgium, Denmark, F r a n c e , t h e F e d e r a l R e p u b l i c o f Germany,
I t a l y , t h e N e t h e r l a n d s , S p a i n , Sweden, S w i t z e r l a n d , and t h e
United Kingdom. I t s headquarters i s located i n Paris.

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T h i s will be t h e f o u r t h s a t e l l i t e launched i n t h e

ESRO program. ESRO-IIA, d e s i g n e d t o measure s o l a r and

cosmic r a d i a t i o n was launched from t h e Western T e s t Range

on May 2 9 , 1 9 6 7 . However a f a i l u r e o f t h e Scout r o c k e t

o c c u r r e d d u r i n g t h e l a u n c h p h a s e and t h e s a t e l l i t e d i d n o t
achieve o r b i t .

ESRO-IIB, a backup to ESRO-IIA, was s u c c e s s f u l l y

l a u n c h e d from t h e Western T e s t Range on May 1 7 , 1 9 6 8 , and
as i n d i c a t e d , ESRO I was launched l a s t y e a r .

The t h i r d s p a c e c r a f t i n t h e s e r i e s , HEOS A - 1 , was

launched from Cape Kennedy, F l a . , b y a Delta r o c k e t on
December 5 , 1 9 6 8 . I t s m i s s i o n i s to s t u d y t h e E a r t h ' s

m a g n e t i c f i e l d from a h i g h l y e l l i p t i c a l o r b i t r a n g i n g
up to 139,000 m i l e s above t h e E a r t h .

J o i n t NASA/ESRO p r o j e c t s are d i r e c t e d b y t h e O f f i c e
o f Space S c i e n c e and A p p l i c a t i o n s , and t h e O f f i c e of I n t e r -
n a t i o n a l A f f a i r s , NASA H e a d q u a r t e r s , Washington, D . C .
$

The NASA Goddard Space F l i g h t C e n t e r , G r e e n b e l t , Md.,

i s charged w i t h c o o r d i n a t i n g t h e p r o j e c t f o r NASA.

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The NASA Kennedy Space Center, Western Test Range,

Calif., w i l l provide t h e launching s e r v i c e s i n coordination

w i t h t h e Scout p r o j e c t o f f i c e o f NASA's Langley Research

C e n t e r , Hampton, V a . The S c o u t r o c k e t i s b u i l t b y Ling-

Temco-Vought, I n c . , Dallas, T e x a s .

(END OF GENERAL RELEASE: BACKGROUND I N F O R M A T I O N FOLLOWS)

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-
FEET
72
t FOURTH STAGE ESRO-IBSPACECRAFT
AND FW-4S
SPACECRAFT -
SOLID PROPELLANT
60 MOTOR

ANTARES -II
E+----- SOLID- P i t O P E L L A N T
T H I R D STAGE MOTOR

50

40
I

1
SECOND STAGE
- CASTOR -II
SOLID-PROPELLANT
MOTOR

30

20
ALGOL-1IB
F I R S T STAGE aS O L I D - P R O P E L L A N T
MOTOR

10

Scout Launch Vehicle

 LAUNCH VEHICLE

S c o u t i s a f o u r - s t a g e s o l i d f u e l r o c k e t s y s t e m . Scout
5-172 and t h e ESRO 1 B s p a c e c r a f t w i l l b e s e t on a n i n i t i a l
l a u n c h azimuth o f 177.216 degrees t o o b t a i n a r e t r o g r a d e ( > r e b i t .
The Scout program i s managed by NASA’s Langley Research Center,
Hampton, V a .

The four. Scout motors, Algol , Castor, Arltares, and FW-4S

are i n t e r l o c k e d w i t h t r a n s i t i o n s e c t i o n s t h a t c o n t a i n guidance,
c o n t r o l , i g n i t i o n , i n s t r u m e n t a t i o n s y s t e m , s e p a r a t i o n mechanics,
and t h e s p i n motors needed t o s t a b i l i z e the Pourth stage.
Guidance f o r S c o u t i s provided by an a u t o p i l o t and c o n t r o l
a c h i e v e d by a combination o f aerodynamic s u r f a c e s , jet vanes
and hydrogen p e r o x i d e j e t s . ’L’he l a u n c h v e h i c1e i s approximately
73 f e e t l o n g and weighs a b o u t 110,000 pourids at l i f t o f f .
.- 1i g ti t S e q u e n c e
I+ I

Event

Li ft o f f -

F i r s t :;tag(- burnout ‘/G .6

Second stage - i g n i t i o n 7‘7.64
.
1 i ‘7 1. 1

1.17 .11
213.01

S p 3-n -up 4 3’1 .11

435.61
F o u r t h s t a g e ignition ’I’iO .I1

Fourth s t a g e burnout & o r b i t a l i n j e c t i o n 474 35

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5-71 E SENSOR SENSOR CONE

5-71 B SENSOR BLOCK (21
TOP CONICAL SOLAR CELL PANEL

5-44 and 5-45 ELECTRONICS

__
.__.
PERMEABLE RODS (32)--- -CYLINDRICAL SOLAR CELL PANEL(8)
5-71 E ELECTRONICS- TELEMETRY DIGITAL ENCODER UNIT
BENDIX UMBILICAL CONNECTOR
,<TURN -ON CONNECTOR
~ -TEST CONNECTORS
DC-OC CONVERTER POWER SUF
UNIT
. _.__-
- - TELEMETRY ANALOG ENCODER
UNIT
INSTRUMENT BOARD N*3--
- __ BATTERY
CENTER CONE --
-5-44 ELECTRONICS
PERMANENT MAGNET (2)-- _-- TAPE RECORDER
- CLEAN SURFACE

SENSOR BOOMS
BOTTOM CONICAL SOLAR CELL PANEL PAYLOAD SUPPORT RING

TYPICAL S E C T I O N (SATELLITE X AXIS)

SATELLITE
+ X AXIS
rr"
rr=z-=* d
L4

BOTTOM VIEW TOP VIEW

ESRO-IB Spacecraft Configuration

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ESRO-IB FACT SHEET

Launch Window: 30-minute window which changes o n l y s l i g h t l y

from day t o day. The window opens a t
3:29 p.m., (PDT), O c t o b e r 1, 1 9 6 9 .
Launch S i t e : Western T e s t Range, Lompoc, C a l i f o r n i a ,
Pad SLC-5.
Launch V e h i c l e : F o u r - s t a g e s o l i d f u e l Scout r o c k e t .
0rbJ;t: Apogee : 435 km ( a b o u t 270 s t a t u t e m i l e s )
Perigee : 400 k m ( a b o u t 2 4 8 s t a t u t e m i l e s )

Period: 9 2 minutes

Inclination: 86 d e g r e e s
Stabilization: S p a c e c r a f t i s s p i n s t a b i l i z e d a t about 1 4 8 rpm
i n i t i a l l y . Despun t o one rpm b y yo-yo
mechanism and f u r t h e r despun by magnetic s y s t e m
which i n t e r a c t s w i t h E a r t h ' s magnetic f i e l d .
S t a b i l i z a t i o n t h e r e a f t e r will b e p r o v i d e d by
a p a s s i v e s y s t e m c o n s i s t i n g o f two permanent
magnets .
Spacecraft : Weight: 1 7 6 pounds
Structure: C y l i n d r i c a l body w i t h t r u n c a t e d
cones a t e a c h end. Overall h e i g h t i s 153 cm.
( a b o u t 60 i n c h e s ) and d i a m e t e r i s 76 cm.
( a b o u t 30 i n c h e s ) ,
Appendages : One e x p e r i m e n t boom one-half
meter ( a b o u t 20 i n c h e s ) long
extending along the s p i n a x i s
from t o p o f s p a c e c r a f t .

- e x p e r i m e n t booms e a c h one
Two
meter ( a b o u t 39 i n c h e s ) long
e x t e n d i n g from bottom of s p a c e -
c r a f t p e r p e n d i c u l a r to s p i n a x i s .

-
Four t e l e m e t r y a n t e n n a s e x t e n d -
from t o p r i m o f s p a c e c r a f t .

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Power: 6,990 solar c e l l s mounted on s p a c e c r a r t

s u r f a c e s u p p l y an a v e r a g e o f 2 3 watts to
o p e r a t e t h e s p a c e c r a f t s y s t e m s and to
keep t h e b a t t e r y (16-ce1-1, t h r e e ampere-
h o u r u n i t ) charged.
Telemetry: (Low-Speed Data S y s t e m ) - T h i s s y s t e m has
a low-power t r a n s m i t b e r w i t h a n o u t p u t
o f two-tenths o f a w G t t i n t h e 136.170
megahertz f r e q u e n c y r a n g e f o r c o n t i n u o u s
data t r a n s m i s s i o n .
(High-speed Data System) -
T h i s s y s t e m uses
a high-power t r a n s m i t t e r w i t h an o u t p u t
o f one and two-tenths watts i n t h e 1 3 6 . 9 5 0
rnhz f r e q u e n c y r a n g e f o r high-speed, real-time,
transmission. The s y s t e m also w i l l t r a n s m i t
data s t o r e d b y t h e s p a c e c r a f t ' s s i n g l e t a p e
r e c o r d e r d u r i n g one o r b i t ( a b o u t 1 0 0 m i n u t e s ) .
Playback t i m e f o r t h i s r e c o r d e r i s t h r e e
minutes.
S p a c e c r a f t C o n t r o l : P r i m a r y c o n t r o l o f t h e ESRO-IB s p a c e c r a f t i s
m a i n t a i n e d a t t h e European Space O p e r a t i o n s
C e n t r e ' s (ESOC) c o n t r o l c e n t e r i n
Darmstadt, Germany.
Tracking: The s a t e l l i t e w i l l b e t r a c k e d b y t h e Redu,
Belgium, s t a t i o n o f ESRO's European S a t e l l i t e
T r a c k i n g and Telecommand Network (ESTRACK)
as w e l l as t h e P r e t o r i a , South A f r i c a s t a t i o n
of t h e French C e n t r e N a t i o n a l d ' E t u d e s
S p a t i a l e s (CNES). N A S A ' s worldwide Space
T r a c k i n g and Data A c q u i s i t i o n Network
(STADAN) w i l l provide a d d i t i o n a l t r a c k i n g
support.

Data A c q u i s i t i o n : S c i e n t i f i c and s p a c e c r a f t performance d a t a

w i l l b e a c q u i r e d from t h e ESRO-IB b y t h e
following s t a t i o n s :
ESTRACK- F a i r b a n k s , Alaska; P o r t S t a n l e y ,
F a l k l a n d I s l a n d s ; Redu, Belgium;
and Ny-Alesund, S p i t s b e r g e n .

-
CNES- P r e t o r i a , South A f r i c a ;
B r a z z a v i l l e , Congo; and
Ouagadougou, Upper V o l t a .

Norway- S t a t i o n a t Tromso, Norway.

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STADAN- Available s t a t i o n s w i l l support

ESRO-I. STADAN s t a t i o n s a t
F o r t Myers, F l o r i d a ; and
Rosman, N . C . , w i l l r e l a y space-
c r a f t data i n real-time t o t h e
Goddard Space Flight C e n t e r ,
Greenbelt, Md., during
s a t e l l i t e ' s i n i t i a l week i n o r b i t .

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ESRO PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS

European Space Research O r g a n i z a t i o n

P r o f e s s o r H e rmann Bondi D i r e c t o r General, ESRO

P r o f e s s o r Werner Kleen D i r e c t o r , European Space
Research and Technology
Center (ESTEC) Moordwijk,
The Netherlands

P i e r r e Blassel Deputy D i r e c t o r ESTEC,

and D i r e c t o r , S a t e l l i t e s and
Sounding Rocket Department,
EST%C

Manfred G Grensemann ESRO I - B P r o j e c t Manager,

ESTEC

John P l e v i n A s s i s t a n t P r o j e c t Manager,
ESTEC

D r . Rudolph Jaeschke ESRO I - B P r o j e c t S c i e n t i s t

of t h e Space Science Depart-
ment ESTEC, Noordwijk,
The Netherlands

N a t i o n a l A e r o n a u t i c s and Space A d m i n i s t r a t i o n

H e r b e r t L . Eaker ESRO-1B P r o j e c t Coordinator

Goddard Space F l i g h t Center

H. L. H o f f Tracking S c i e n t i s t , Goddard

John R. H o l t z E x p l o r e r s & Sounding Rockets

Program Manager, NASA Head-
quarters

P a u l E. Goozh Scout Program Manager

NASA Headquarters

Roland D. E n g l i s h Head, S c o u t P r o j e c t O f f i c e
Langley Research C e n t e r

Joseph T a l b o t Scout Payload Coordinator

Langley

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KSC, Unmanned Launch Operations - Western Test Range

W i l l i a m D. Hlnshaw Head, L a n g l e y Mission S u p p o r t
O f f i c e , WTR
Henry R . Van Goey Manager, KSC, ULO, WTROD

C. 11. Fuentes KSC, ULO, WTROD - ESRO-18

Coordinator

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