CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Another military navigation spacecraft was successfully launched into Earth orbit Monday riding atop an Air Force Delta 2 rocket on a $90 million satellite delivery mission.
Planned to fly long before Operation Iraqi Freedom materialized, the Navstar Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite is expected to be operational in less than 30 days.
Known as GPS-2R9, it was lofted to replace an early Navstar model that was sent into space 13 years ago and now is at the end of its useful lifetime.
"The launch of 2R9 continues the success story of our replenishment launches to maintain the GPS constellation for our government and commercial users," said Col. Allan Ballenger, system program director at the Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles AFB, Calif.
The $2.5 billion constellation of 28 Navstar GPS satellites send out a signal that is received by military and civilian users around the world to help them keep track of where they are on the planet, what direction they are moving and how fast they are going.
Originally classified top-secret by the Pentagon, GPS satellite receivers now can be found on the shelves of consumer electronics stores; or on the dashboards of civilian cars, trucks and minivans.
Despite the war on Iraq and the availability of the free GPS signal to anyone with a receiver, Air Force officials have said there are no plans to restrict access to the civilian signal -- a move that would require a presidential directive.Space shot
Liftoff of the Boeing-built, three-stage Delta 2 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station came at 5:09 p.m. EST (2209 GMT), delayed to the end of a 15-minute launch window because of a last minute technical problem with the Eastern Range.
Gusting surface winds were a concern right up until the blast off into chilly blue skies as Florida's Space Coast was experiencing what weather officials called the final wintertime blast of cold air.
The workhorse Delta 2 rocket appeared to fly through its usual launch sequence without incident.
First its main engine and six of nine strap-on solid rocket boosters ignited to send the 13-story rocket skyward. About a minute later the remaining three boosters fired and the first six dropped away.
Another minute or so passed before the air-lit boosters extinguished and were jettisoned, by which time the booster was quickly moving from sight of ground-based eyewitnesses.
One hour and eight minutes after liftoff, the Lockheed Martin-built GPS spacecraft separated from the Delta 2 upper stage and the launch phase of the mission was declared a success.
"It was a flawless launch," said Will Trafton, vice president and general manager of Boeing Expendable Launch Systems. "We've got a great team here at the Cape... and they've done it once again."
The shot marked the 49th time a Navstar GPS was sent into orbit from the Cape -- something that launch site workers are particularly proud given the war in Iraq.
"The control of the battlefield does start here," said Lt. Col. Brad Broemmel, the 45th Space Wing's 1st Space Launch Squadron commander at the air station.
"GPS is like water. Our combat forces don't go anywhere without it now, and we'd like to think that the 45th Space Wing is the tap. We want to keep that tap open, that's what assured access to space means," Broemmel said.
Look ahead
Another launch like Monday's is targeted for July when the Air Force is to loft GPS-2R10, Ballenger said.
Then a year later, around July 2004, the Air Force will begin a series of launches to send eight upgraded GPS spacecraft into orbit called GPS-2RM -- with the "M" standing for modernized.
The newer spacecraft will feature additional military and civilian signals, as well as increased power for the military signal.
After that will be another series of follow on spacecraft known as the GPS-2F, Ballenger said, which in turn will pave the way for the next generation of navigation satellites that will be called GPS-3.
First launch of those spacecraft is expected in the 2012 timeframe, but there are discussions of accelerating that program by possibly a year or two, Ballenger said.
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