tiros iii press kit

8/8/2019 Tiros III Press Kit

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N E W S R E L E A S ENATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION1 5 2 0 H S T R E ET , N O R T H W E S T . W A S H I N G T O N 2 5 . D . C .T E L E PH O N E S: D U D LE Y 2 - 6 3 2 5 . E X E C U T I V E 3-3280FOR RELEASE: Sunday AM'sRELEAsE NO. 61-147 J u l y $$ 1961

- a t e l l i t e )Another s t ep i n t h e development o f a g l o b a l_I p e r a t i o n a l-

s a t D T t F w e a t h e r observat ion system w i l l soon be a-by the Nat ional A eronaut ics and Space Adminis t rat ion i nlaunching a t h i r d Ti ros me teo rolog i ca l s a t e l l i t e f rom CapeCanaveral , Flor ida,I f the l aunch i s completely successful , t h e 285-pounds a t e l l i t e w i l l c i r c l e t h e ear th every 98 m inu tes i n a 400m i l e h ig h o r b i t and, l i k e i t s s i s t e r s a t e l l i t e s , T ir os Iand Tiros 11, t ransmit thousands of t e l e v i s i o n p i c t u r e s oft h e e a r t h ' s cloud cover t o ground s t a t i on s f o r wea thera n a l y s i sThe new Tiros i s of p a r t i c u l a r i n t e r e s t t o meteoro log is t si n t h a t t h e p r o j ec t e d l i f e t i m e o f t h e s a t e l l i t e c oin cid eswi th th e cur ren t hurr ica ne season , Weather an a l ys t s arehopeful. t h a t th e s a t e l l i t e w i l l prov ide va luab l e i n s igh t son t h e o r i g in , development and movement of hur r i canes .Unlike Tiros I and I1 which used one wide angle and onenarrow angle h igh reso lu t ion v id icon te lev i s ion cameras , t h i sTi ros w i l l be equipped w i t h two wide angle cameras. Thischange was based on t h e e a r l i e r experiments which showedthat more valuable information f o r weather ana lys i s wasava i l ab l e from t he wide a n gl e p i c t u r e s . The two camerasi n t h i s experiment are i d e n t i c a l t o the wide angle camera

used i n Tiros I and 11.

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As ir: the f i r a t and seeond Tiros, the satellite containsmagnetic tape recorders whioh can store up to thirty-two picturesduring each orb5-t for transmission earthward when the satelliteis wlthin 1500 mile command range of a ground station.Ir,addition, the hat-boxed shaped satellite carriesimproved remote control programmers for the electronic equip-

ment and new transistorized circuits in the electronic clockswhich trigger the cameras.Other fnstrumentation, which fnc ludes beacon transmitters,attitude sensors, hoaafzon mmmers, telemetry circuits anda magnetic orfentation control system is idenused in Tiros 11. Also, as in Tiros 11, Wt'Wcontains infrared radfatlon experiments to measure sun-earthradiation relationships.Power fos the operation of electronic equlpment isfurnished by chemlcal batteries charged by more than 9,000solar c e l l s which are mounted on the tops and sides of the

42 x 19 inch high apacecraft.developed by NASA. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center hasoverall technical direotion of the satellite, includingtracking and command responsibility, mCt1;develoged thescanning infrared radiatian @xperiments. The Astro ExectronicsProducts Division of RCA designed the eelevision system andassembled and tested the myload under NASA contract. TheMeteorological Satellite LaQQratoryof the U. S. Meather Bureauis responsible f o r analysis of ehe meteorological data anda number of U, Sl and forQign nation weather agencies areexpected t o mke use of Tfros da&ta both'for research andcurrent weather analysis.

The launching vehfole w i l l be a three stage Delta rocket

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FACT SHEETTHE TIROS SATELLITE

QENERALSatellite was designed to obtain television pictures of cloudformations and infrared measurements of heat balance in the

atmosphere around the world, and transmit both pictures andmeasurements to ground stations for meteorological analysis andlimited operational use.Weight : 285 poundsShape Dimensions: Cylindrical, resembling a large hat box,Launch From Atlantic Missile Range, Cape Canaveral, Floridaon a three-stage Thor Delta vehicle.Orbit: Approximately '400 miles altitude, at inclinationof 48 degrees from the Equator at speeds approaching17,000 miles per hour.

42 inches in diameter, 19 inches high.

OPERATIONPower: 9,260 solar cells provide electrical energy to63 nickel cadmium storage batteries which, in turn,power electronic instrumentation.Transmitters Five transmitters relay data from the satellite toground stations.

a. Each of the two television camera systems hasa two watt ground command transmitter operatingon 235 megacycles.b, One two-watt 237.8 megacycle transmitter, a l s ooperated by ground command, relays infraredexperiments data.c. Two 30-mc tracking beacons operating continu-ously on frequencies of 108 mc and 108.03 mcare used to relay satellite environmentaldata such as temperature, pressure and batterycharge level. Beacon frequencies are modulatedby ground command.

Television System:The satellite's two identical TV cameras use a one-half inch Vidicon tube especially designed forsatellite use. The cameras are aligned parallelto the satellite's spin axis and "see" throughthe spacecraft baseplate. Each camera consistsof a Vidicon tube and a focal plane shutter whichpermits still pictures to be stored on the tube screen.

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An e l e c t ro n beam converts t h i s s t o r ed p i c t u r e i n t oa TV-type e le c t r on ic s ig na l which can be t r ansm i t t edt o ground rece ivers .Connected t o each camera i s a magnet ic t ape recorderand e l e c t ro n i c c lock o r t imer . Out of ground s t a t i o n range, eachcamera cafi record up t o th i r t y- tw o pi ct ur es on t h e s to rage t apef o r l a t e r r e l ay - - t h i s can be done by programming the timer, asmuch as f i v e hours i n advance When th e s a t e l l i t e i s wi th ing round s t a t i on r ange t h e pho tos a r e "read out" and the tape i swiped c lean , immedia te ly rewinding i t s e l f f o r i t s next recording.The magnetic tape s to ra ge system can a l s o be bypassed, and thes a t e l l i t e th en tr a ns mi ts p i c t u r e s d i r e c t l y t o t he g round s t a t i onas i t passes through i t s range.

ir ,c,hes p e r second during playback and rec ord ing . Photo data aretransmstted from one camera at a t i m e and t a pe readout from bothcameras t akes a b o u t three m i n u t e s . The tw o TV systems operatei n d e p e ~ d e n t l y

The p l a s t i c t ap e i s 400 f e e t long and moves f i f t y

Horizon Sensor:An in f r ar ed sensor , mounted on t h e r i m of thesa te l l i t e can de termine when i t s f i e l d of view c ros ses t h e E a r t h ' shorizon. T h i s informat ion i s r e l ayed t o t h e ground s t a t i ons v i at h e t r ac ki ng beacons and ass i s t s i n d ete rm in in g t h e s a t e l l i t e ' sa t t i t u d e i n space .

Nor th Ind i ca to r :Around the sides o f t h e s p a c e c r a f t a r e n i neesp ec i a l l y pos i t i oned so l a r ce l l s , which gene ra t e im pu lses tomeasure t h e p o s i t i o n of t h e s a t e l l i t e w i t h r e s p e c t to t h e Sun.These data a r e t r a n s m i t t e d w i t h t h e TV t ransmiss ion t o t h eground s tat ions where t h ey a re processed by a computer t o showwhich d i rec t ion i s nor th i n each photograph.

Magnet ic Qri en ' ta t i on Control :A wire coil a round the ex t e r i o r l ower s i de s oft h e s a t e l l i t e g en er at es a. c o n t r o l l a b l e m a gn et ic f i e l d a ro un d t h es a t e l l i t e . When t h i s magnetic f i e l d i n t e r r a c t s w i t h t h e e a r t h ' s ,

i t provides a means f o r g r a d u a ll y t i l t i n g t h e s a t e l l i t e on commandt o ob ta in advantageous angle f o r sens ors and s o l a r power supply.

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Controls :When t h e payload i s separa ted f rom t h e t h i r d s t a g eof t h e Delta l aunch vehic le i t w i l l be spinning a t about 126 r . p , m .About te n minutes a f t e r sep ara t ion , a t imer w i l l r e l e a s e a de-spinmechanism t o s l o w t h e r e vo lu t ions t o ab o u t 1 2 r . p . m . T h i s mechanismco ns is t s o f two weights a t ta che d t o cab les wound a round the s a t e l l i t e .

As t h e weights unwind, t h e y s l ow t h e r a t e of s p i n and when c omple telyunwound, drop o f f a u t o m at i c a l ly . The s a t e l l i t e has a n i n t e r n a larrangement of s l i d i n g weights to cancel any wobbling motion.

To remain s t ab le i n o r b i t , T i ros must m ain tain as p i n r a t e of a t l e a s t 9 r .p .m. and when the s a t e l l i t e sp in approachest h i s minimum one of f i v e pai r s of small c o n t r o l r o c k e t s are f i r e dt o spee d up r o t a t io n .basepla te of t he s a t e l l i t e , a c t i v a t e d by ground command and eachs e t can only be used once.These s e t s o f r o c ke t s are located around t h e

INFRARED R A D IA T IO N EXPERIMENTSTi ros c a r r i e s t h r e e r a d i a t io n e xpe r im e n ts , one sc anning andtw o non-scanning. The scanning exper iment cons is t s of f i v e s e n s o r st o map r a d i a t i o n i n v ar io us s p e c t r a l f i e l d s and i s e s s e n t i a l l y t hesame experiment which was conducted by Ti ros 11. T h i s experimentinc lu des mapping of r e f le c t ed s o la r rad ia t io n , long wave ra d i a t io nemit ted f rom th e ea r t h and i t s atmosphere, temperature o f t h e e a r t h ' ss u r f a c e or cloud tops and temperature of an a tmospher ic leve l va ry ingw i t h t h e amount of wa te r vap or a t a n a v e r a g e a l t i t u d e of about 25,000f e e t .One non-scanning type i s t he same a s i n T i ros I1 and w i l lprovide gross hea t budge t in format ion by measuring re f l ec te d s o l a rra d i a t io n and long wave ra d i a t io n e m i t t e d from th e e a r th a nda%mosphere.designed by Dr. Vernon Suomi of the University of Wisconsin andi s s imi l a r t o t h a t which was suc ces sfu l ly used on Explore r VII.T h i s exper iment a l so w i l l measure th e gross hea t budge t bu t th edata w i l l b e more continuou s si nc e th e sen sor s can view t h e e a r t ha lmos t a l l of the t ime ,

The secon d non-scanning and new exper ime nt has been

Purpose behind the I R experiments i s t o f i n d o u t how muchs o l a r e n er gy i s abosrbed , re f l ec te d and emi t ted by t h e e a r t h a n di t s atmosphere; knowledge which could prove of g re a t va lue t om e te oro log i s t s .

f o r one o r b i t on magnet ic ta pe f o r playback on command from oneof t h e g r o u n d s t a t i o n s .Data f r o m t h e in f r a r ed exper iments a r e recorded cont inuously

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- .itOUND STATIONSThere m e two NASA primary command and data readout stations.Oq.e, operated under a service contract with RCA, is located atW ~ l l o p sIsland, Virginia. The other, operated by the U. S. Navy,is located at the Pacific Missile Range, California. Backups,ations a r e located at the Atlantic Missile Range, Florida andR C A ' s facility in Princeton, New Jersey.At the ground stations, cloud cover pictures will be displayedon Kinescopes for photographing. In addition, both photo andinfrared data will be recorded on magnetic tapes. Meteorological

terns at both primary &rcund stations will analyze the mostimmediately useful data and some pictures will be transmittedin real time through weather communications networks for limitedoperatlonal use.The infrared tapes will be sent to NASA's Goddard Space FlightCenter : f o r processing and analysis. Negatives of cloud pictureswill be sent t o the U. S. Naval Photographic Interpretation Center

for photo developing and processing.

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TIROSPROJECT PARTICIPANTS

The o v e r - a l l r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r t h e p r o j e c t r e s t s w i t h t h eNationa l Aeron autics and Space Adminis trat ion. The op er at io na lphase of th e p r o j e c t , i s under th e d i re c t io n of NASA's GoddardSpace F li g h t Ce nter . Goddard w i l l pr,epare the command program-ming which t h e ground s t a t i ons w i l l re l ay t o t h e s a t e l l i t e .These programs w i l l be based on information from NASA's Comput-ing Center and t h e M e te or ol og ic a l S a t e l l i t e L a b or at or y of t h eU. S. Weather Bureau. The r a d i a t i o n experi ments were designe dand t h e data s torage and telemetry equipment associated w i t hthem were constructed by Goddard where the I R data w i l l beanalyzed . Opera tional t rac k ing w i l l be provided by t h e Plini-tr a c k network, co nt ro ll ed from Goddard.

With the excep t ion of t h e i n f r a r ed exper im ent s , t h es a t e l l i t e was designed and constructed by the Ast ro-Elec t ron icsDivison of RCA, Pr ince ton , N e w Jersey, under co nt ra ct t o NASA.I n a d d i ti o n , RCA was r e spons ib l e f o r th e spe c i a l g round s t a t i onequipment. Barnes En gin ee rin g Company, Stamfo rd, Co nn ec tic ut ,under NASA con t ra c t , p rov ided rad ia t i on de te c t or s . Dr. VernonSuomi, University of Wisconsin, designe d and cons truc ted one oft h e I R experiments.

Douglas A i r c r a f t Company i s prim e con t rac to r f o r t he De l tal aunch veh i c l e . In add i t i o n , i t i s r e spons ib l e fo r l aunch ingse rv i ces , suppor t ed by t h e A i r Force Missile T e s t Cen ter whichopera t e s the Atlant ic Miss i le Range.The Meteoro log ica l S a t e l l i t e Laboratory of t h e U . S . Weather

Bureau i s r e spons ib l e f o r an al ys i s of c loud c6ver data andm e t e o r o l o g i c a l i n t e r p r e t a t i o n of t h e r a d i a t i o n data . Cooperat-i n g i n t h i s phase of t h e p r o je c t a r e t h e U . S. Navy PhotographicI n t e r p r e t a t i o n C en te r, t h e Geophysics Research Direc tora te o ft h e A i r Force Cambridge Research Laboratories, t h e A i r ForceA i r Weather S er vic eg th e Navy Weather Se rvic e and un iv er si tyresearch groupsO f f i c i a l s concerned w i t h t h e TIROS experiment include:D r . Morrr 's Tepper, Chief of Meteorology Programs, NASAHeadquartersMr. W i l l i a m G . Stroud, Chief of the Aeronomy and Meteor-ology Division a t Goddard Space Flight Center.M r . Robert M . Rados, T I R O S Pr oje ct Nanager , N A S A ' s GoddardSDace Flight Center.

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Abraham Schnapf, Project Manager for RCA's Astro-Electronics Division.Dave Johnson, Director f o r the Weather Bureau's Meteor-logical Satellite Laboratory.International Cooperation:As in the case of TIROS 11, NASA and the U. S. WeatherBureau will conduct a joint program of international participa-tion with the new TIROS. The objective of this program willbe to provide an opportunity far weather services in othercountries to correlate their o w n ground-based observationswith satellite cloud cover photographs.After the satellite is launched and has been determinedto be operating satAsfactorily, interested countries will ,benotified and provided with information to use in coordinatingtheir own [email protected] exchange of photographs and other meteorological data

obtained as a result of these coordinated observations will beconducted by the U. S. Weather Bureau.

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TIROS I A N D TIROS I1SUMMARY

The 27O-pound Tiros I was launched into a n ea r c i r c u l a r o r b i tfrom Cape Canaveral on 1 A p r i l 1960 . Over 22,000 photographs of cloudcover were tra nsm itt ed between 1 A p r i l and 17 June 1960,when photoin t e r roga t i on ceased . Desp i te i t s r e l a t i v e l y b r i e f s c i e n t i f i c a l l yu s e f u l l i f e t i m e of 78 days , metero log is t s ha i led Ti ros I as t h ehe ra ld of new and advanced weather obse rva t i on e ra .T i ro s I1 was launched from Cape Canaveral on 23 November 1960i n t o e s s e n t i a l l y t h e same 400-mile-plus h igh or b i t a l g roove of t h ee a r l i e r T i ro s. A t t h e t i m e of Jaunch I t was given an es t imatedl i f e t i m e of t h r e e months, b ut t h e r e l i a b i l i t y of th e s a t e l l i t e ' selilctronic components exceeded a l l expectat ions , and it was s t i l ltpansmi t t ing us efu l da ta seven months a f t e r l aunch . A s of 22 May1961 a t o t a l of 31,485 photographs had been t ransmit ted ear thwardby the narrow angle and wide angle te levis ion

spa ce cr af t . The in f ra re d exper iment sensors f a i l e d a f t e r fiv ,e months.T l i J s , a t t he t im e of launch of t h e new Tiros, Tiros I1 i s producingnarrow angle p ic tu res , degraded wide angle pictures and no I R d a t a .The narrow angle pi c tu r e s a r e e s s e n t i a l l y u s e f u l f o r r e se a rc h and anadequat e volume now e x i s t s . The new T ir os w i l l provide b e t t e r wideang le p i c tu res and l a r g e volume of I R d a t a .

systems of' t h e

When t h e new Tiros has been launched and has been determined t obe opera t in g success f u l ly , T i ros I1 w i l l be s i l e n c e d . From t im e t ot im e , when pa r t i c u l a r l y i n t e re s t i n g weather events are noted, a t temptsw i l l b e made to r e a c t i v a t e T i r os 11. However, su cc es sf ul resumptionof data product ion by Ti ros I1 i s considered t o be h igh ly doub t fu l .

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LAUNCH V-The Del ta veh ic le used t o has t hesecha rac t e r -

isticg:Height: 92 f e e tMax Diameter 8 f e e tLift-off Weight: A l i t t l e l e s s than 112,000 pounds

Firs t Stage (Modif ied Douglas Thor) :Fuel : Liquid (LOX and Kerosene)Thrust: About l50,OOO poundsBurning Time: 160 seconds

Second Stage (Aerojet General):Fuel: LiquidThrust : About 7,500 poundsBurning T i m e : 109 seconds

T h i r d Stage (Allqgany Ballistics Laboratory X-248) :Fuel : S o l i dThrust: About 3,000 poundsBurning Time: 40 seconds (After 7 minute coas t )

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Fi r i ng Sequence:The f i r s t s t a g e f a l l s away on bu rn ou t. The second

s t ag e ig n i te s immedia tely . The nose fa i r in g which covers t h i r dstage and payload i s j e t t i son ed a f t e r twen ty s econds o f second stageburning. The t h i r d s t a g e d o e s n ' t i g n i t e u n t i l s ev en m in ut es ofc o a s t i n g a f t e r second s t a g e burnout . Then, the t h i r d s ta ge i s s p i n -s t ab i l i z ed and th e second s tag e f a l l s away. The t h i r d s t ag e r eachesa n o r b i t a l v e l o c i t y o f a lm os t 17,000 miles per hour .

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tiros iii press kit

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