Movatterモバイル変換


[0]ホーム

URL:


Jump to content
WikipediaThe Free Encyclopedia
Search

SOLRAD

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected fromSolrad 11A)
Series of American satellites

SOLRAD (short for "SOLar RADiation," sometimes presented as "SOLRAD") was an American series ofsatellites sponsored by theUS Navy in a program to continuously monitor theSun. SOLRAD was theNaval Research Laboratory's first post-Vanguard satellite.[1]

A first-series SOLRAD/GRAB

Background

[edit]

Until theKennedy administration, American satellite launches were unclassified.[2] As a result, theUnited States Air Force and the Navy found themselves in the awkward position of wanting to orbit spy satellites but not reveal their nature to potential enemies. Just as the Air Force elected to pair their capsule film recovery satellites with biological payloads under theDiscoverer program, so did the Navy develop a scientific cover for itsGRAB series of radio/radar surveillance (ELINT) satellites.

The field of solar X-ray astronomy lent itself well to such an application. As the Earth's atmosphere absorbs extraterrestrial X-ray sources (of which the Sun is by far the most prominent), it is necessary to send sensors high in or above the atmosphere to detect them. Otherwise, a vast spectrum of solar output is unavailable to Earthbound scientists.[3]

Thus, the GRAB satellites would be equipped with X-ray sensors such that they could conduct publicly available scientific research while secretly spying on other countries' military installations. Moreover, through continuous observation of the Sun, the SOLRAD satellites would help the military better understand the effect of solar activity (includingsolar flares) on radio communications.[4]

Development

[edit]

When theNational Aeronautics and Space Administration was established on July 29, 1958, most of the NRL Vanguard group's 200 scientists and engineers became the core of NASA's spaceflight activities (though the group remained housed at NRL until the new facilities at theGoddard Space Flight Center in Beltsville, Md. became available in September 1960).

Despite this exodus, NRL satellite and space-based research continued. Through the advocacy of NRL engineer Martin Votaw, a small contingent of remaining NRL rocket scientists and technicians regrouped to form the Satellite Techniques Branch headed by Votaw.

Their first project was SOLRAD. The new branch was tasked with creating the engineering hardware of the "satellite bus," responsible for the structure, power supply, command, telemetry and the coordination of a satellite, along with its interface with the booster. The branch also handled any special circuitry needed to support the satellite payload.[5]

The SOLRADs were not a standardized series of satellites. The first five SOLRADs, launched 1960–1962, were scientific payloads aboardGRABELINT satellites, whose primary mission was to monitor foreign radar and communications systems. Starting in 1963, the next three SOLRADs were stand-alone satellites co-launched with next-generationPOPPY surveillance satellites,[6] and beginning withSOLRAD 8, in 1965, SOLRADs were launched alone under the auspices of the Explorer program.[7]

Launches

[edit]
NameLaunch dateInternational DesignatorsOther namesLaunch vehicle
SOLRAD mass simulator13 April 19601960-003CThor DM-21 Ablestar[8]
SOLRAD 122 June 19601960-007BGRAB-1Thor DM-21 Ablestar
SOLRAD 230 November 1960 (failed launch)SRD-2GRAB-2Thor DM-21 Ablestar
SOLRAD 329 June 19611961-015BGRAB-3a,Injun 1Thor DM-21 Ablestar
SOLRAD 424 January 1962 (failed launch)GRAB,Injun 2[9]Thor DM-21 Ablestar[7]
SOLRAD 4B26 April 1962 (failed launch)SRAD4BGRAB-3bScout X-2
SOLRAD 5Not launchedGRAB
SOLRAD 615 June 19631963-021CSolrad 6A[10]Thor-Agena D
SOLRAD 7A11 January 19641964-001DSolrad 6[11]Thor Augmented Delta-Agena D
SOLRAD 7B9 March 19651965-016DThor Augmented Delta-Agena D
SOLRAD 819 November 19651965-093AExplorer 30Scout X-4
SOLRAD 95 March 19681968-017AExplorer 37Scout B-1 S160C
SOLRAD 109 July 19711971-058AExplorer 44Scout B S177C
SOLRAD 11A14 March 19761976-023CTitan IIIC
SOLRAD 11B14 March 19761976-023DTitan IIIC
SOLRAD 11CNot launchedSRD-11C

References

[edit]
  1. ^Wade, Mark."Solrad". Archived fromthe original on December 28, 2016. RetrievedJanuary 3, 2019.
  2. ^Day, Dwayne A.; Logsdon, John M.; Latell, Brian (1998).Eye in the Sky The Story of the Corona Spy Satellites. Washington and London: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 176.ISBN 1-56098-830-4.
  3. ^Keller, C. U. (1995). "X-rays from the Sun".Experientia.51 (7):710–720.doi:10.1007/BF01941268.S2CID 23522259.
  4. ^"Navy's Needs in Space for Providing Future Capabilities". RetrievedJanuary 6, 2019.
  5. ^"NRL Center for Space Technology Reaches Century Mark in Orbiting Spacecraft Launches". RetrievedJanuary 6, 2019.
  6. ^McDowell, Jonathan."Launch Log". Jonathon's Space Report. RetrievedDecember 30, 2018.
  7. ^abAmerican Astronautical Society (23 August 2010).Space Exploration and Humanity: A Historical Encyclopedia [2 volumes]: A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. pp. 300–303.ISBN 978-1-85109-519-3.
  8. ^Johnson, Stephen B. (23 August 2010).Space Exploration and Humanity.ISBN 9781851095193. RetrievedJanuary 11, 2019.
  9. ^"Composite Launch Attempt Fails".Aviation Week and Space Technology. New York: McGraw Hill Publishing Company. January 29, 1962. RetrievedJanuary 15, 2019.
  10. ^McDowell, Jonathan."Launch Log". Retrieved2018-12-30.
  11. ^Landini, M.; Fossi, B. C. Monsignori; Poletto, G.; Tagliaferri, G. L. (1968)."The 44 60 Å flux during the ascending period of the solar cycle no. 20 (1964 67)".Solar Physics.5 (4): 546.Bibcode:1968SoPh....5..546L.doi:10.1007/BF00147019.S2CID 120525776. RetrievedJanuary 10, 2019.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=SOLRAD&oldid=1084023187"
Categories:
Hidden categories:

[8]ページ先頭

©2009-2025 Movatter.jp