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Atlas IIA
Launched 1998-01-29 18:37 UTCLaunch Complex 36A, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
Success
Reached Elliptical Orbit
Worldwide
6th
orbital launch attempt in 1998
Lockheed Martin
2nd
launch this year
Launch Complex 36A
1st
launch from this pad this year
Pad turnaround
96 d 17 h
since the pad's previous launch
Satellite Data System (SDS) spacecraft are communication relay satellites for transmitting real-time data from US reconnaissance satellites (e.g. KH-11, Onyx, Topaz) in polar areas. They are also used for communications to USAF aircraft on polar routes and connect the various ground stations of the Air Force Satellite Control Network (AFSCN). The spacecraft relay the downlinked data to a ground station at Fort Belvoir, Virginia.
Lockheed Martin's Space Division started in the production of missiles and later ICBM's in the 1950s. Their TITAN missile system was used for 12 Gemini spacecraft and the Voyager probes. They have worked largely in collaboration with NASA on many of their probes, landers, and spacecraft, and hope to play a key role in NASA's return to the moon in 2024.
Launches
80
Successful
77
96%
Upcoming
0
scheduled
Height
47.5m
Diameter
3m
To low Earth orbit
6,580kg
Liftoff thrust
2,479kN
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