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Posted by baalke on January 30, 2006, 6:52 pm
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http://www.jhuapl.edu/newscenter/pressreleases/2006/060130.asp
For Immediate Release
January 30, 2006
Media Contacts
Michael Buckley
JHU Applied Physics Laboratory
Phone: 240-228-7536 or 443-778-7536
E-mail: michael.buckley@jhuapl.edu
New Horizons Successfully Performs First Post-Launch Maneuvers
NASA's New Horizons spacecraft has successfully carried out its first
post-launch maneuvers, conducting two small thruster firings that
slightly adjusted its path toward the outer solar system and the first
close-up study of distant planet Pluto.
Carried out today and Jan. 28 by mission operators at the Johns Hopkins
University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Md., the
maneuvers refined the spacecraft's trajectory toward a gravity
assist-flyby of Jupiter in February 2007. The gravity boost from
Jupiter
will put New Horizons on course for a close flyby of Pluto and its
moons
on July 14, 2015.
"Everything performed as planned," says New Horizons Project Manager
Glen Fountain, of APL. "New Horizons has to fly through a precise aim
point near Jupiter to get to Pluto on time and on target, and these
maneuvers are putting us on the right path."
Conducted with a pair of hydrazine-fueled thrusters on the spacecraft's
lower deck, the maneuvers Saturday and today lasted about five and 12
minutes, respectively, providing a total change in velocity of just
under 18 meters per second (about 40 miles per hour). The spacecraft
was
nearly 11.9 million kilometers (7.4 million miles) from Earth when it
completed today's maneuver at 2:12 p.m. EST.
New Horizons was launched Jan. 19 from Cape Canaveral Air Force
Station,
Fla., aboard an Atlas V launch vehicle. The powerful Atlas V, combined
with a STAR 48 solid-fuel kick motor, sent the piano-sized 1,054-pound
probe speeding from Earth at more than 36,000 miles per hour - the
fastest spacecraft ever launched.
The Atlas V/STAR-48 combination was extremely accurate in placing New
Horizons on its outbound trajectory; pre-launch predictions had allowed
for a "clean up" maneuver five times the size of the combined thruster
firings just completed. "Doing small maneuvers earlier allows us to
correct trajectory errors before they grow, which saves more propellant
for science observations later in the mission," says Alice Bowman, New
Horizons mission operations manager at APL.
The mission team plans to conduct one additional, small trajectory
correction maneuver this Feb. 15. Close approach to Jupiter will occur
on Feb. 28, 2007; besides the gravity assist, the flyby through the
Jupiter system will allow the mission team to test the spacecraft's
science instruments on the giant planet and its moons.
"We're on our way to an exciting Jupiter encounter and a date with
destiny at Pluto," says Dr. Alan Stern, New Horizons principal
investigator from the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colo.
New Horizons is the first mission in NASA's New Frontiers Program of
medium-class spacecraft exploration projects. Stern leads the mission
and science team as principal investigator. APL manages the mission for
NASA's Science Mission Directorate and is operating the spacecraft in
flight. The mission team also includes a number of other firms, NASA
centers, and university partners.
For more information on the mission, visit http://pluto.jhuapl.edu.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) is a not for profit laboratory and
division of The Johns Hopkins University. APL conducts research and
development primarily for national security and for nondefense projects
of national and global significance. APL is located midway between
Baltimore and Washington, D.C., in Laurel, Md. For information, visit
www.jhuapl.edu .
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