GOES-K UPDATE #3

The third in a series of the most sophisticated weather satellites ever built, has reached geosynchronous orbit. The Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES)-K, launched April 25 from Cape Canaveral Air Station, was commanded to perform its final apogee adjust maneuver on Saturday morning. Then, the GOES-K Satellite began its final journey toward its on-orbit storage position at 105 degrees West Longitude and officially became known as GOES-10.

The GOES satellite series is given a letter designation while under construction on the ground and is renamed with a numerical designation after reaching orbit or following the final apogee adjust maneuver. This is done for two reasons: first, satellites are easier to track in orbit if they are designated with a number; second, the satellites are built in alphabetical order but are not necessarily launched in this same order. Therefore, to avoid confusion, they are numbered upon reaching orbit.

"All operations continue to go extremely well," said Doug McCuistion, NASA GOES-K Operations Manager, Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. "We're looking forward to deploying the solar sail this next week and then beginning our functional tests."

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Sunday evening, controllers successfully deployed the magnetometer boom and fully deployed the solar array. Later this week (May 6), controllers will perform a spin-up of a momentum wheel and deploy the solar sail.

Throughout the next several weeks, controllers will be performing numerous tests on the spacecraft and instruments to include storage mode tests culminating with GOES-K being placed into storage in late July.

Information will be updated on the Goddard Audio News Service, (301) 286-NEWS, as it becomes available. GOES-K was built for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration under technical guidance and project management by the Goddard Space Flight Center.

The primary point of contact for the remaining GOES-K status reports is Patricia Viets, NOAA/NESDIS, Suitland, Md.

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