* Astronomy

Blobrana · L

RE: NFIRE satellite

Blobrana · L

An US Air Force Minotaur 1 rocket was successfully launched at 2:48 a.m. EDT today from the NASA Wallops Flight Facility.
The four-stage rocket carried the US Defence Department's Missile Defence Agency's (MDA) Near Field Infrared Experiment (NFIRE) satellite. This was the second Minotaur 1 launch from Wallops in just over four months. The previous mission on Dec. 16, 2006, carried the Air Force Research Laboratory's TacSat-2 satellite.

"This launch again demonstrates the unique capabilities of the Wallops Flight Facility, which includes the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, to efficiently support the placing of satellites into Earth orbit. NASA is particularly appreciative of the support provided by the US Coast Guard, US Fish & Wildlife, Virginia Marine Resource Commission, and state and county security and emergency preparedness organizations. Working with the Air Force, MDA, and their contractors, the preparation for this launch and the launch itself went very smoothly. We are pleased to have supported this mission" - Dr. John Campbell, Director of the NASA Wallops Flight Facility.

The next Minotaur 1 rocket launch from Wallops is currently scheduled for December 2007.

Source USnewswire

Blobrana · L

The launch of an experimental military satellite was scrubbed early Monday.
The launch was scrubbed at around 3 am EDT (07:00 GMT), a half-hour before the scheduled liftoff time.
The launch on April 23 was postponed due to an issue involving ground support equipment and could not be resolved to meet the launch window.
The launch of the Air Force Minotaur 1 rocket carrying the Missile Defence Agencys Near Field Infrared Experiment (NFIRE) satellite has been rescheduled until no earlier than 2:48 a.m. (06:48 GMT), Tuesday, April 24.

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Blobrana · L

The U.S. military is about to launch a small missile-watching satellite after years of quiet preparation and years of alarming reports from critics about its purpose. The NFIRE satellite is due to be sent into space early Monday from a Virginia launch pad.
To the US Defence Department, which owns and will operate the satellite, NFIRE stands for "Near Field Infrared Experiment." That encapsulates the mission's goal of observing the rocket plumes of military missiles to be launched past it later this year. NFIRE will map and characterise the brightness of the rocket plumes to help the Pentagon design future guidance systems for anti-missile weapons now under consideration.

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The spacecraft's launch atop a commercial Minotaur booster, is scheduled for 3:11 a.m. ET from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on Virginia's Wallops Island.