High in the sky above Lompoc, California, a freefalling Staff Sgt. Eric Thompson planned his skydive to coincide with the
June 7 liftoff of a Delta 2 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base.
The Delta 2 carried the Italian Thales
Alenia-Space COSMO-SkyMed satellite, placing it into Earth orbit. Thompson is
an instructor with the 532nd Training Squadron.
The spacecraft will take imagery of the Earth
using an X-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar instrument at the request of
institutional and commercial users, including members of the defense, civil and
scientific communities.
Thales Alenia Space-Italia developed the
COSMO-SkyMed program for the Italian Space Agency and the Italian Ministry of
Defence. While more than 50 Italians have been working on base at Vandenberg to
prepare the satellite for sendoff, another 150 flew in from Italy to observe the event.
It's a sure bet that Thompson had the most
unique view in the house.
--Leonard David
Credit: U.S. Air Force
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