- Space Exploration
The premier unmanned satellite launch of the year was the Chandra X-Ray Observatory. Formerly called the Advanced X-Ray Astrophysics Facility, it was renamed in honour of Indian-American astrophysicist Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar. Chandra was equipped with a nested array of mirrors to focus X-rays on two cameras that could produce highly detailed images or high-resolution spectra of sources emitting X-rays. Soon after entering orbit, Chandra started returning stunning images of the pulsar in the Crab Nebula, the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant (and an apparent X-ray source that had previously eluded detection), and other bodies. Unexpected radiation degradation affected one instrument, but scientists devised a procedure to prevent further damage.
Germany’s ABRIXAS (A Broad-Band Imaging X-Ray All-Sky Survey; launched April 29) was designed to map up to 10,000 new X-ray sources with a cluster of seven X-ray telescopes. The American Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (June 24) was designed to study hydrogen–deuterium (heavy hydrogen) ratios in intergalactic clouds and interstellar clouds unaffected by star formation in an effort to determine the H–D ratio as it was shortly after the big bang.
The commercial American Ikonos 2 satellite (September 24) opened the field of high-resolution (one-metre) imaging, previously available only to the military. Images of virtually any part of the Earth could be purchased; the U.S. government reserved the right to block views of sensitive areas, even though it could not control the images provided by non-U.S. firms.
Low-cost electronics and other factors made possible a number of educational and amateur satellite opportunities. They included South Africa’s Sunsat (February 23), Russia’s Sputnik Jr. 3 (April 16), Britain’s UOSAT 12 (April 21), and the U.S.’s Starshine (June 5), a sphere with 878 48-cm (18.7-in)-diameter mirrors polished by children from the U.S., Zimbabwe, Pakistan, and 15 other countries to enable tracking by 25,000 high-school students throughout the world.
The launch industry was troubled by several expensive failures, including two U.S. military Titan 4B rockets, one carrying a missile early-warning satellite (April 9) and the other a communications satellite. Russia’s Proton launcher also experienced two failures (July 5 and October 27), which cast doubt on its reliability in supporting the International Space Station. (The service module was to be launched on a Proton.)
The Roton rotary rocket started limited flight tests on July 23, with a two-man crew piloting a test model in short, low-altitude flights. Roton was a single-stage-to-orbit craft with a unique recovery system. It deployed a four-blade helicopter rotor after reentry. Rocket exhaust ducted through the rotor tips rotated the blades and thus provided lift and control during approach and landing. The crew rode in a small escape capsule between the fuel and oxidizer tanks and next to a payload bay designed to accommodate midsize unmanned satellites.
Another unique launch system making its debut was the international Sea Launch venture (its ownership was Russian, Ukrainian, American, and Norwegian). This employed Odyssey, a launch facility converted from a self-propelled offshore petroleum platform, and a control ship that doubled as the integration facility. The key advantage was that the ship could be positioned near the Equator, where the Earth’s rotation is greater and thus would give the rocket more of a running start. The Earth’s geography makes few such land sites available. Sea Launch also eliminated the need for maneuvers that consume fuel in order to align a satellite’s orbit with the Equator, as is needed for communications satellites in geostationary orbit. Sea Launch performed well in its first two flights. On March 28 it launched a dummy spacecraft simulating a popular Hughes Aircraft model. Its first paying customer, DirecTV-1R, was launched October 9.