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Aviation History
1980
1980 - 0084.PDF
78 FLIGHT International, 12 January I9i Shuttle engine achieves successful clustered firing THREE Space Shuttle Main Engines (SSMEs) successfully completed a full-power, nominal duration, clustered burn for the first time on December 17, as briefly mentioned in Flight, January 5. The 550sec firing was begun at full power, but included planned reductions to 90, 80 and 70 per cent power. Engine gimballing and tests of the pogo suppressors were also carried out. The burn was terminated with just two engines running, the third having been shut down 5sec earlier as planned. The next clustered SSME firing will take place at the National Space Technology Laboratories in Bay St Louis, Mississippi, this month. Nasa plans to achieve engine certification by June 30—the target date for the first Shuttle flight. Other goals include roll-out of first Orbiter Columbia in March and com pletion of Shuttle assembly in April. High-flier detects galaxy cluster ASTRONOMERS say that data ob tained from a Nasa U2 aircraft flying at high altitude may have revealed a huge cluster of galaxies in the con stellation Virgo. The cluster, contain ing 30 to 40 per cent more galaxies than normally found in an equivalent volume of space, is the largest dis covered. Present astronomical theories sug gest that the galaxy cluster would have had to be formed shortly after the known start of the universe— about 15,000 million years ago. (The big bang theory suggests that the universe was formed in one gigantic explosion, thus explaining the expand ing universe.) Discovery of the cluster implies that the primordial explosion which formed the universe may have been lumpy. There may also be other large galaxy clusters. It is estimated that the cluster just discovered encom passes about one per cent of the observable universe, making it an extremely large grouping. Scientists are now including the cluster in models, which previously supposed a more uniform universe. Ford Aerospace ships share in Japanese satellite FORD Aerospace has completed its share of Japan's second Experimental Communications Satellite, EGS-b, which it is jointly building with Mitsubishi. The satellite has now been shipped to Japan's National Aerospace Develop ment Agency (Nasda) Tanegashima launch site in preparation for a flight in February. ECS-b is intended to prove communications technology in the high frequency wave bands from geostationary orbit. Other objectives include validation of launcher, track ing and satellite attitude control. Japan's first ECS failed to achieve orbit when the spent third stage of its N-l launcher collided with the satel lite (Flight, June 9). Japan's Experimental Communications Satel lite, ECS-b. Ford Aerospace is responsible for overall design of the craft, which is being built jointly with Mitsubishi Russia's new Soyuz THE Soviet Union launched an un manned Soyuz capsule on December 16, which docked with the empty orbiting laboratory, Salyut 6, three days later. The craft, called Soyuz T, is a new version of that normally used to orbit two-man crews. The Soviet Union says that Soyuz T features new systems, including a computer com plex and improved communications and attitude-control equipment. US space experts have speculated that Soyuz T may be a three-man ver sion. If this is true it would allow more efficient transport of cosmonauts between the ground and orbiting lab oratories. Observers believe that room for the third man could have been made by repositioning of landing parachutes and the adoption of fuel cells for electricity generation. Pre vious Soyuz have relied upon batteries for electrical power. Soyuz T's docking with Salyut 6, achieved by radio commands from the ground, is the 16th link-up with the laboratory. The last crew to inhabit Salyut 6, Lyakhov and Ryumin, re turned safely to Earth during August last year. Lyakhov and Ryumin spent a record-breaking 175 days in space. As we close for press Soyuz T is still attached to Salyut 6. Once all the testing is complete it seems likely that Soyuz T will be returned to Earth. Voyager 1 hiccup NASA controllers lost contact with Voyager 1 on December 13, but managed to regain full communica tions on December 16. Voyager l's second temporary blackout, like the first, is believed to have been caused by sensors incorrectly selecting star groups for orientation. NASA LAUNCHES IN 1980 Launch date January January February April May July August August October Satellite Fltsatcom Solar Maximum Mission (SMM) Intelsat V-A NOAA-B Intelsat V-B ' Navy-20 Goes-B , Intelsat V-C Navy-21 Purpose Ship/shore communications Solar astronomy Commercial communications Weather observation Commercial communications Navigation (Transit) Weather observation Commercial communications Navigation (Transit) User* DoD Nasa Intelsat NOAA Intelsat DoD NOAA Intelsat DoD Launcher Atlas-Centaur Delta Atlas-Centaur Atlas-F Atlas-Centaur Scout Delta Atlas-Centaur Scout Launch pad Cape Canaveral Cape Canaveral Cape Canaveral Vandenberg AFB Cape Canaveral Vandenberg AFB Cape Canaveral Cape Canaveral Vandenberg AFB •Abbreviations: Department of Defence (DoD), National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Environmental Satellite (Goes). All launchers are expendable and Space Shuttle flights are thus not included. Geostationary Operational
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