Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/5/84; site riccb.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxn!ihnp4!riccb!rjnoe From: rjnoe@riccb.UUCP (Roger J. Noe) Newsgroups: net.space Subject: Re: Re: Ariane destroyed Message-ID: <528@riccb.UUCP> Date: Sat, 14-Sep-85 16:35:21 EDT Article-I.D.: riccb.528 Posted: Sat Sep 14 16:35:21 1985 Date-Received: Sun, 15-Sep-85 09:48:42 EDT References: <536@petrus.UUCP> Organization: Rockwell International - Downers Grove, IL Lines: 25 I also heard opinions expressed that not only will satellite insurance be difficult to obtain from now on, but that it could actually become impos- sible. I was thinking that maybe this would only be true of launches from expendable launch vehicles (ELVs, or "elves") since the only satellites that have been total losses were on ELVs, not the shuttle. TDRS-A, Westar VI, and Palapa B-2 have all been nudged into their proper orbits, even though their motors failed in one way or another. And Syncom IV-3 has been activated and looks like it may very well overcome manufacturing problems and reach its proper orbit. Not to mention the Solar Max retrieval and on-orbit repair. The shuttle not only gets satellites to low Earth orbit safely every time, it provides a means to repair satellites that have had failures in upper stages after reaching LEO. It seems like insurance rates for satellites deployed from the shuttle should go way down while those for Ariane should go way up. I think this demonstrates what I always felt was a big advantage for deployment by shuttle rather than by ELV. And the latest Ariane failure (bringing their failure rate up to 20%) is not isolated by any means. Just two weeks ago, a Titan III and a USAF recon- nissance satellite were lost after launch at Vandenberg AFB. Cost: an estimated $150 million. Strictly speaking, the Space Transportation System is one launcher which has NEVER failed to get a payload into orbit. Doesn't it seem likely that this will finally cause the insurance and satellite communications industries to realize that the shuttle is actually a more cost effective means of reaching orbit? -- Roger Noe ihnp4!riccb!rjnoe Brought to you by Super Global Mega Corp .com