Sep 29 1971
From The Space Library
U.S.S.R. launched Cosmos 442 from Plesetsk into orbit with 272-km (169.0-mi) apogee, 199-km (123.7-mi) perigee, 89.7-min period, and 72.8° inclination. Satellite reentered Oct. 12. (GSFC SSR, 9/30/71; 10/31/71; SBD, 10/4/71, 108)
Fourteenth flight of TF-8A jet aircraft equipped with supercritical wing was completed, flown from FRC by NASA test pilot Thomas C. McMurtry in accelerated TF-8A flight test program [see Sept. 15]. (NASA Proj Off) [[ Apollo 15]] Astronauts David R. Scott, James B. Irwin, and Alfred M. Worden visited KSC to thank personnel for their support during Apollo 15 mission. KSC Deputy Director Miles Ross told crowd of about 5000 that with all talent assembled in VAB "I think this is the real Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts." (Spaceport News, 10/7/71, 1)
NASA and FAA announced agreement for joint participation in flight- simulation R&D projects at ARC. NASA would make ARC simulation facilities and supporting services available to FAA. FAA would provide its own technical personnel and resident director, who would coordinate FAA R&D projects With ARC director. (NASA Release 71-185)
Engine fell off USAF C-5A training aircraft preparing for takeoff from Altus AFB, Okla. Later, USAF officials said preliminary investigation had traced cause to structural problems in pylons that held engines to wing. Aircraft had accumulated 1300 flying hrs and more than 3000 landings. USAF said it had grounded seven C-5A's with similar flying hours until new pylons could be installed. (Getler, W Post, 10/7/71, 2)
Senate by vote of 61 to 28 rejected amendment proposed by Sen. William Proxmire (D-Wis.) to terminate USN F-14 fighter aircraft pro-gram by deleting $801.6 million from H.R. 8687, $51-billion FY 1972 military procurement authorization. (CR, 9/29/71, 515329- 15405)
Virginians for Dulles, citizen group representing persons living near flightpaths of Washington National Airport, filed suit in U.S. District Court to prevent stretch-jet aircraft from landing or taking off at Washington National and to ban all jet traffic at airport after 11 pm because of noise pollution. (W Post, 9/30/71, B3)
Washington Post editorial questioned need for F-14 USN fighter aircraft: "The F-14 has too many attributes of another great defense turkey [F-111B] to be approved at this time by the Senate. We believe the Senate should send the Navy back to the drawing board to come up with either an improved F-4 or a new fighter plane that is not too costly to be purchased in adequate numbers and that has a reasonable chance of performing a valid function." (W Post, 9/29/71, A18)
New Orleans Times-Picayune editorial commented on U.S.-U.S.S.R. agreement on New York-Moscow comsat link to prevent war by nuclear accident: "The technology of satellite relay is beyond us, but we recall a treaty signing recently in Washington and Moscow at which the signers watched each other on satellite-relayed television. Yet it is reported that the link may take a long time and require building ground stations near the two cities and launching special satellites. Cannot the hot line be given a reserved channel on present facilities?" (New Orleans Times-Picayune, 9/29/71)
September 29-30: NASA's OSO 7 (OSO-H) Orbiting Solar Observatory was launched from ETR at 5:45 am EDT by two-stage Thor-Delta DSV-3N booster to study sun and its influence on earth's atmosphere. Second-stage anomaly resulted in noncircular orbit of 575.7-km (357.7-mi) apogee, 329.1-km (204.5-mi) perigee, 93.6-min period, and 33.1° inclination. Primary mission objective was to obtain high-resolution data from solar corona in particular spectral bands in EUV and in visible regions during one solar rotation. Tetr 3 (TETR-D) Test and Training Satellite, carried pickaback on Delta 2nd stage, was ejected into orbit with 571-km (354.8-mi) apogee, 391-km (243-mi) perigee, 94.3-min period, and 33,0° inclination.
Primary objective of 45-lb (20.4-kg) secondary payload was to test Manned Space Flight Network and train MSFN personnel. Second-stage anomaly of launch vehicle separated spacecraft at pitch angle outside normal sun acquisition limits. For eight hours following orbital insertion, ground controllers manually commanded spacecraft to despin. Pitch angle was then changed to place it within automatic acquisition range. Sail section was commanded to acquisition mode and sail acquired and locked onto sun at approximately 2:00 pm EDT. Batteries were then charged. Orbit would permit observations for more than a year. OSO 7, improved over earlier OSOs, provided for increase in experiment size and weight and power and extended capability in pointed mode, including stability and pointing during night portion of orbit. It was spin-stabilized; weighed 636 kg (1403 lbs) ; carried six scientific experiments; and had two main sections-wheel (lower), which carried nondirectional scanning experiments and basic support equipment, and sail (upper), which carried pointed experiments.
Experiments, designed to continue and extend work of preceding oso space-craft, were provided by GSFC, NRL, MIT, Univ. of New Hampshire, and Univ. of California (San Diego). OSO 7 was 8th in series of 11 OSO spacecraft designed to provide direct observations of sun during most of 11-yr solar cycle. OSO 1 (launched March 7, 1962) and OSO 2 (launched Feb. 3, 1965) had passed their six-month lifetimes and together provided more than 8600 hours of scientific information. OSO-c (launched Aug. 25, 1968) had failed to reach orbit when booster malfunctioned. OSO 3 (launched Mar. 8, 1967) and Oso 4 (launched Oct. 18, 1967) transmitted on command only. OSO 5 (launched Jan. 22, 1969) had both tape recorders and seven of eight experiments operating satisfactorily after six months in orbit. OSO 6 (launched Aug. 9, 1969) was September 29-30: OSO 7 Orbiting Solar Observatory was launched into orbit to study the sun and its influence on the earth's atmosphere. High spatial-and spectral-resolution data were obtained by the pointed experiments on the sail and scanning experiments on the wheel. First x- ray observations from a spacecraft of the beginning of a solar flare and of solar "streamers" were made Oct. 3-6. The white light coronagraph above, from a Naval Research Laboratory experiment on OSO 7, showed three coronal streamers from the sun. The black bullseye in the center was produced by a circling occulting disc that caused an artificial eclipse. The distance from the center of the disc to the edge of the photograph was about 10 solar radii, or about 6.4 million kilometers (4 million miles). relaying information from all seven experiments. OSO program was managed by GSFC under OSSA direction. (NASA Proj Off; NASA Re-lease 71-163; Spacewarn, 10/5/71)
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