Feb 15 1978
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(New page: MSFC announced NASA had extended the mission lifetime of the first earth-orbiting high-energy astronomy observatory HEAO 1; originally scheduled to end...)
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MSFC announced NASA had extended the mission lifetime of the first earth-orbiting high-energy astronomy observatory HEAO 1; originally scheduled to end Feb. 12, to at least mid-November when the second of the series was due for launch. The high quality of scientific data received from HEAO 1 had prompted the decision to extend the mission. Launched Aug. 12, 1977, HEAO 1 had been the first of three planned large unmanned orbital observatories managed by MSFC; the third would be launched in 1979. HEAO 1 had been a scanning mission for fully mapping the celestial sphere; the second HEAO mission would point very precisely at x-ray sources identified by HEAO 1, which had already significantly advanced knowledge of celestial x-ray and gamma-ray sources. By extrapolating these results, the scientists expected to increase the number of x-ray objects identified by the first 6 mo of data from 200 to 1000 or more, with further increases during the extended operation.
HEAO 1, although basically a scanning instrument, had been versatile enough to stop its rotation and point briefly at items of particular interest; resolution and sensitivity would increase tremendously in the pointing mode. HEAO 1 was performing about 5 daytime pointings lasting about 3hr during a week; extended mission lifetime would enable the mission-control crew to add night pointings. Dr. Fred Speer, mission director, explained: "Astronomers would like to have their optical viewings and optical photography of stellar objects-which of course can only be done at night with optical telescopes-coincide with our pointings with the X-ray sensors aboard HEAO 1, so that data can be correlated." (Marshall Star, Feb 15/78, 1)
MSFC announced that the American Inst. of Astronautics and Aeronautics (AIAA) had installed Dr. William Lucas, MSFC director, as a fellow at the 14th AIAA annual meeting Feb. 8. AIAA had selected Dr. Lucas "in recognition of your many outstanding contributions and acknowledged leadership in the professional aerospace community," according to a letter from AIAA president R. H. Miller. Others named AIAA fellows were former astronauts Sen. Harrison Schmitt (R-N.M.) and David Scott, Or. Donald Hearth of Langley Research Center, and Harvard Lomax of ARC. Elected an honorary fellow was former NASA Administrator Dr. James C. Fletcher. (Marshall Star, Feb 15/78, 1)
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