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PMitNews
National Aeronautics and
Space Administration
Washing'on. DC. 20546
AC 202 755-8370

For Release FRIDAY

January 19, 1979

Press Kit Project SCATHA

RELEASE NO: 79-3

Contents
GENERAL RELEASE...................................... 1-4

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATORS/SPONSORS ................ 5

DELTA LAUNCH VEHICLE 2914 STATISTICS ......... 6-7
LAUNCH OPERATIONS .................................... 7
NASA/USAF SCATHA LAUNCH TEAM ........................ 8

CONTRACTORS ............................ 8
SCATHA LAUNCH SEQUENCE OF EVENTO.......................9

January 12, 1978

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 National Aeronautics and
Space Administration
Washington, D.C. 20546
AC202 755-8370 . ...

For Release:
Dave Garrett
Headquarters, Washington, D.C. MAY
(Phone: 202/755-3090) Januay 19, 1979

Donald E. Witten
Goddard Space Flight CenEer, Greenbelt, Md.
(Phone: 301/344-8955) , .

RELEASE NO: 79-3

SATELLITE TO STUDY ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS . -

Possible remedies for electrical static discharges

that have disabled or affected high-altitude satellites

will be studied with an Air Force satellite to be .1aunched'

by NASA from Cape Canaveral, Fla., no earlier than Jan. 25-.

Launch window for that day extends from 5:02 to 5:2J p.m. EST.

Named SCATHA (Spacecraft Charging at High Altitudes),

the 659-kilograms (1,452-pound) satellite wilL lift off atop

a Delta launch vehicle,. The Air Force will xeimburse NASA

$8.9 million for the launch vehicle and services.,!

Most space-related electrical charging problems have

been qbserved on satellites at the geosynchronous orbital

altitude of 35,900 kilometers (22,300 miles). Satellites

in such an orbit remain over the same spot on the.Ear~th's

equator. This is because the satellite.'s velocity is-

synchronized with the Earth's 24-hour period qf rotation.

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Electrical arcing in comraercial and military communications

to have
satellites at the geosynchronous altitude is known
also
been responsible for equipment failures. Such arcing
false
has caused switches to operate, resulting in the
recording of unachieved events as well as the initiation
of unplanned events.
The orbit selected for SCATHA experiments will carry

the research satellite above and below the geosynchronous

orbital altitude as well as north and south of the
equatorial plane. It also will allow the vehicle to d:ift

eastward around the globe about 6 degrees a day.

This elliptical SCATHA orbit will have an apogee of
mi.),
42,306 Em (26,859 mi.), a perigee of 27,780 km (17,262
Due to
and will be inclined 8.3 degrees to the equator.
this inclination, the satellite will seem to draw a lazy

figure'eight pattern in space.

to
The SCATHA satellite carries 12 experiments designed
identify and measure sources of electrical charge buildup

on the spacecraft. They also will measure the electrical

charging levels and rates of some 20 metals and insulation

new
devices, including types previously used as well as some
Lu the fabrication of spacecraft.
Three SCATHA experiments are provided by NASA. These

include a mass spectrometer from the Marshall Space Flight

Center,'HuntsVille, Ala., along with a precise magnetometer
and an electric field detector from the Goddard Space Flight

Center, Greenbelt, Md.

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C-,

(Ycq9. the deploymentl

engineers will keep a chose
Project
tci-tJ pQtsibslC
electric field detector diie.
of Goddard'., l
^This -unite consists
on the dynamics of the satellitc
affect
antenpa~s wich-,yhli be
(l64-foot)-lo-li
of two 50-meter
directions to form a_;sirxglelia
extended in opposite
a football field.
antenna longer than to
field detector antenna will be.. deployed
The electric
just prior to the time when the
mid-March,
its full length in
gccipPses of
will begin to experience daily
SCATHA satellite
Most serious electrical4,'chargi
the Sun by the Earth.
such perio,,dsof
have occurred during
events on spacecraft
eledtrical-chargnglphenomena.
eclipse. Sunlight reducesthe will
eclipse period for the SCATHA satellite
The spring
The maximum period
March 20 and last about 44 days.
begin
for the orbiting spacecrAft will last
of any daily eclipse

71 minutes.
by the
willbe encountered
Another eclipse period

satellite next fall.

application in the design of
In addition to direct
orbit, data from
operating at the geosynchronous
satellites
plans.
program may be vital to NASA's long-range
the SCATHA
being considered for
Large-scale satellite structures
will operate
in space during the 21st century
fabrication be,
Spacecraft charging problems could
at high power levels.
for such structures.
particularly significant

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Other sponsors of SCATHA experiments
are the Air Force
Space and Missile Systems Organization
(SAMSO), the Air
Force Geophysics Lab, and the Office
of Naval Research (ONR).
The SCATHA satellite was developed
for SAMSO, Air Force
Systems Command, Los Angeles Air Force
Station, Calif., by
Martin Marietta Aerospace Corp., Denver,
Colo.
The Delta launch vehicle program is
managed by the
Goddard center, for NASA's Office of
Space Transportation
Systems. NASA's Kennedy Space Center,
Fla., manages launch
operations. Prime contractor for the Delta and
for launch
operations is McDonnell Douglas Astronautics
Co., Huntington
Beach, Calif.

(END OF GENERAL RELEASE. BACKGROUND INFORMATION FOLLOWS)

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Principal Investigators/Sponsors

Experiment Title PI/Sponsor. Affiliat'ion

1 Engineering Dr. H. C. Koons The Aerospace' Corp.

Experiments USAF/AFSC/SAMSO Los-Angeles, Calif.

Spacecraft Sheath Dr. J. F. Fennell The Aerospace Corp.

Electric Fields USAF/AFSC/SAMSO Los Angeles, Calif.

High Energy Particle Dr. J. B. Reagan Lockheed Palo Alto

Spectrometer ONR Research Lab, Palo Alto,
Calif.

Satellite Electron and Dr. H. A. Cohen Hanscom AFB/LKB

Positive Ion Beam USAF/AFC Bedford, Mass.
System

Rapid Scan Particle Lt. D. Hardy Hanscom AFB/PHE

Detector USAF/AFSC Bedfordr Mass.

Thermal Plasma Dr. R. C. Sagalyn HansconmAFB/PHR

Analyzer USAF/AFSC Bedford, Mass.

Light Ion Mass Dr. D. L. Reasoner NASA Marshall Space

Spectrometer NASA/ONR Flight Center
Huntsville, Ala.

Energetic Ion Dr. R. G. Johnson Lockheed Palo Alto Research

Composition Experiment ONR Lab, Palo Alto, Calif.

UCSD Charged Particle Dr. S. E. Deforest University of California,

Experiment ONR/USAF/AFSC/ Dept. of Physics,
SAMSO La Jolla, Calif.

Electric Field Dr. T. L. Aggson NASA Goddard Space Flight

Dtt NASA Center, Greenbelt, Md.

Magnetic Field Dr. B.'G. Ledley NASA Goddard Space Flight

onitor NASA Center, Greenbelt, Md.

Spacecraft Dr. D. F. Hall The Aerospace Corp.

Contamination USAF/AFSC/AFML- Los Angeles, Calif.

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Delta Launch Vehicle 2 9 14:Statistics

The SCATHA spacecraft will be launched by a three-

stage D'elta 2914 launch vehicle. This launching will
be
the 148th for the Delta which has a success performance
record of more than 90 per cent. The launch vehicle
the following general characteristics: has

Height: 35.4 m (116 ft.) including shroud

Maximum diameter: 2.4 m (8 ft.) without attached
solids
Liftoff weight: 131,895 kg (293,100 lb.)
Liftoff thrust: 1,765,315 newtons (396,700 lb.)
including strap-on solids

First Stage:

An extended long-tank Thor, produced by McDonnell

Douglas,has RS-27 engines produced by the Rocketdyne
Division
of Rockwell International. This stage has the following
characteristics:

Height: 21.3 m (70 ft.)

Diameter: 2.4 m (8 ft.)
Propellants: RJ-1 kerosene as the fuel and liquid
oxygen (LOX) as the oxidizer
Thrust: 912,000 N (205,000 lb.)
Strap-on solids consist of 9 TMX-354-5 Castor II
solid-propellant rockets produced by the Thiokol Chemical
Corp. with the following features:

Height: 7 m (23 ft.)

Diameter: 0.8 m (31 in.)
Propellants: Solid
Thrust: 2,083,000 N (468,000 lb.) for nine
231,400 N ( 52,000 lb.) for each

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Second Stage:
Produced by McDonnell, this uses a TRW TR-2Q1 rocket
engine; major contractors for the vehicle inertial guidance
system located on the second stage are McDonnell Douglas and
Delco. The second stage has the following characteristics:
Height: 6.4 m (21 ft.)
Diameter: 1.5 m (5 At.)
Propellants: Liquid Aerozene 50 for the fuel and
nitrogen tetroxide (N2 04 ) for the
oxidizer

Thrust: About 42,943 N (9,650 lb.)

Third Stage:
A TE-364-4 motor produced by Thiokol Chemical Corp.,
with the following characteristics:
Height: 1.4 m (4.5 ft.)
Diameter: 1 m (3 ft.)
Propellants: Solid
Thrust: 61,855 N (13,900 lb.)

Launch Operations

The Kennedy Space Center's Expendable Vehicles Directorate

handles the preparation and launch of the thrust-augmented
Delta rocket that will carry the SCATHA spacecraft.
Delta 148 will be launched from Pad B, southernmost of
the two launch pads at Complex 17, Cape Canaveral Air Force
Station.
The Delta first stage and interstage were erected on
Pad B on Nov. 27. Erection of the nine Castor 2 solid rocket
motors around the base of the first stage was accomplished
on Nov. 29-30. The second stage was erected atop the first
stage on Dec. 1.
The SCATHA spacecraft arrived at KSC on Nov. 7.

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 NASA/USAF SCATHA Launch Team

NIASA Headquarters:

r(o!ill F. Yarda~ley Associate Asministrator, Office

of Space Transportation Systems
dos-(iph B.. blahon * Director of Expendable Launch
Vehicle Systems, OSTS
Peter T. Eaton Manager, Delta Program, OSTS
Goddard Space Flight Center:
Dr. Robert S..Cooper Director
Robert E. Smylie peputy Director
Robert N. Lindley Director, Project Management
Robcrt Baumann Aqsociate Director for Space
Transportation
David W. Grimes Delta Project Manager
William R. Russell Deputy Delta Project Manager,
Technical
Robert Goss Manager, Delta Mission Analysis
and Integration
William R. Burrowbridge NATO II-C Mission Integration
Manager
William Hawkins Mission Operations and Network
Support Manager
Ray Mazur Mission Support
Kennedy Space Center:
Lee R. Scherer -Director
Gerald D. Griffin Deputy Director
Dr. Walter J. Kapryan Director of Space Vehicles
Operations
George. F. Page Director, Expendable Vehicles
W. C. Thacker Chief, Delta Operations Division
Wayne L. McCatll Chief Engineer, Delta Operations
Division
John J. Dunn, Spacecraft Coordinator

nor) 'USAF .
1,1. Col. John Durrett SCATHA Spacecraft Program Manager
USAF/SAMSO

CONTRACTORS
Martin Marietta Aerospacq., ,Spacecraft
Denver, Colo.
McDonnell Douglas Delta Launch Vehicle
Astronautics Co.
Huntinqton Beach, Calif. - more

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