The implementation plan for the "return-to-flight" of the space shuttle after the spectacular Columbia disaster upon re-entering the earth's atmosphere on February 1, 2003 included significant upgrades to the Ground Camera Ascent Imagery assets at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The accident was due to damage incurred when a piece if insulating foam debris from the external fuel tank struck the left wing during take-off. The Ground Camera Ascent Imagery Project encompasses a wide variety of launch vehicle tracking telescopes and cameras at the Eastern Range. Most of these launch vehicle imaging telescopes are manually tracked and fitted with video and 35 mm film cameras, and many of them are fixed-focus (i.e., focused at the hyperfocal distance for the duration of the launch). In this paper we describe a systems engineering analysis approach for obtaining performance predictions of these aging launch vehicle imaging telescopes. Recommendations for a continuing maintenance and refurbishment program that closes the loop around the KSC photo-interpreter are included.
Performance modeling of launch vehicle imaging telescopes
Optical Modeling and Performance Predictions II ; 2005 ; San Diego,California,United States
Proc. SPIE ; 5867
18.08.2005
Aufsatz (Konferenz)
Elektronische Ressource
Englisch
Large aperture telescopes for launch with the Ares V launch vehicle
Online Contents | 2010
|Modeling the Imaging Performance of Ground-Based Telescopes
British Library Conference Proceedings | 2008
|Large Aperture Telescopes Enabled by the Ares V Launch Vehicle AIAA Paper
British Library Conference Proceedings | 2007
|Ares V Launch Capability Enables Future Space Telescopes
NTRS | 2007
|