Jan 18 1974
From The Space Library
First evidence of water molecules in a comet had been identified in the tail of Comet Kohoutek by Canadian scientists Dr. Gerhard Herzberg and Dr. Ain Lew, both of Canada's National Research Council, NASA announced. Dr. Herzberg and Dr. Lew identified the molecules by analyzing emissions of light at five wavelengths in the red region of the comet's spectrum, where the positively charged molecules, ionized by solar radiation, were pushed by the solar wind. Data had been collected by telescopes at Asiago Astrophysical Observatory in Italy and Univ. of California's Lick Observatory m October and November 1973. The discovery of hydrogen in the comet supported the "dirty snow-ball" theory that comets might be composed of an icy nucleus, various other frozen gases, and tiny dust particles as proposed by Dr. Fred L. Whipple, retired Director of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and principal consultant to NASA on comets. (NASA Release 73 [74]-13)
Hazard analyses and quality control techniques developed by NASA in the Apollo program would improve the reliability of safety and antipollution equipment used in the offshore drilling of oil wells, NASA announced. At the request of the U.S. Geological Survey, NASA teams at Marshall Space Flight Center, the Mississippi Test Facility, and the Michoud Assembly Facility had recommended development of subsurface safety valves, activated either automatically after sensing increased velocity in the oil line or by remote control from a surface location, to protect the marine and coastal environment. (NASA Release 74-10)
Development of a two-man version of the F-5E International Fighter had been initiated by the Air Force, the Air Force Systems Command announced. Designated the F-5F and to be built by Northrop Corp., the two-seater would have the same performance and weapon capability as the single-seat F-5E but was to provide the capability of training fighter pilots in all aspects of fighter aircraft operations. The first test aircraft was expected to fly in September 1974. (AFSC Release OIP 002.74)
18-27 January: NASA launched Skynet ILIA, first of two second-generation United Kingdom communications satellites on the 100th Thor-Delta- a three-stage, thrust-augmented booster-from Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 17 at 9:38 pm EDT. The satellite was placed in an extremely eccentric orbit when the attitude control system of the rocket's 2nd stage failed. The apogee was 3406 km, perigee 95 km, period 121.6 min., and inclination 37.6°. Tracking stations were unable to pick up. signals from the spacecraft.
On 23 Jan. the satellite was found by the Air Force Satellite Control Facility and attempts were made 24 Jan. to raise the orbit by firing the spacecraft's onboard thrusters. Although the firing was successful, the orbital attitude was not raised enough to extend the life of the satellite. Skynet HA reentered the earth's atmosphere and burned up 25 Jan. over the southwestern Pacific Ocean.
The Skynet II communications satellite program was being carried out under a U.K.-U.S. agreement signed 1 April 1970 and a USAF-NASA agreement 1 May 1972 to provide the U.K. in-orbit, X-band military communications between designated earth stations and replace Skynet A and B, launched by NASA 21 Nov. 1969 and 18 Aug. 1970. NASA responsibilities included integration of the U.K.-built spacecraft with the launch vehicle and provision of the vehicle and related services including net-work tracking communications and telemetry during ascent and transfer orbit phase. Another Skynet II satellite was to be launched in the fall. (NASA MORS, 8 Jan 74, 4 Sept 74; AP, NYT, 30 Jan 74; AP, W Star-News,19 Jan 74, A4)
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