Path: utzoo!utgpu!attcan!uunet!husc6!cfa!cfa250!mcdowell
From: mcdowell@cfa250.harvard.edu (Jonathan McDowell)
Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle
Subject: Re: NAVSTAR
Message-ID: <1129@cfa237.cfa250.harvard.edu>
Date: 21 Oct 88 15:20:53 GMT
References: <22000008@m.cs.uiuc.edu>
Organization: Harvard/Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Lines: 20

From article <22000008@m.cs.uiuc.edu>, by kenny@m.cs.uiuc.edu:
> Further GPS launches are manifested on STS-45 (1/31/91: Atlantis) and
> STS-48 (5/2/91: Atlantis); I don't know offhand how many birds will be
> on each.  These will be the first GPS satellites deployed from the
> Shuttle; the current nine went up on expendables (Titan III's, I do
> believe... anyone got the straight poop on this?)

The first GPS satellites went up on Atlas F/SVS and Atlas E/SGS-II 
rockets from Vandenberg. The forthcoming launches, beginning in
1989, will be on Air Force Delta II MLVs; only one craft will be on
each of the two shuttle launches, the early multiple deployment
plans have, I understand, been dropped in favour of single deployments
with Pam-D's, but in any rate the primary booster for Block II GPS
is going to be the Delta II, I think Shuttle is really just
a backup for them now (ironic, huh.)

Does anyone know which of the GPS birds in orbit are still operating?
I know some of the early ones are no longer fully functioning.

Jonathan McDowell