WASHINGTON The Air Force and Lockheed Martin have chosen September 24 as the firm launch date for the second Ikonos remote sensing satellite, space.com was told Friday. Launch window opens at 11:22pm PT and closes 30 minutes later. Launch of the satellite aboard an Athena rocket will be conducted from SLC-6 at the Air Force Vandenberg California launch complex.

The Ikonos will feature one-meter imagery capability, the highest resolution ever available from a commercial imagery satellite. An identical Ikonos and Athena were destroyed during a launch attempt last spring when the rockets payload fairing, a cover over the satellite, failed to separate, making the vehicle overweight and causing it to fall back to earth.

The mission also clears the Athena for future launches, including an August 2000 NASA satellite flight from the Kodiak Island Alaska launching facility. That Athena 1 mission will be the first orbital launch from Alaska.

The Ikonos, which will be operated by the Colorado-based Space Imaging Inc. will be capable of photographing individual aircraft, trucks, urban features and buildings. It will not be able to image people.