TDRS-A - The pioneering payloadThe first launch of a Tracking Data Relay Satellite (TDRS-A) on board the Shuttle Orbiter 'Challenger' of the Space Transportation System (STS) provided many pioneering events as a payload/user. The TDRS-A was launched as a payload of the STS as well as a payload of the Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) on April 4, 1983. This paper traces the payload processing flow of the TDRS-A from its arrival at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC), through its launch on Challenger and its trans-orbit flight on the IUS to geosynchronous orbit. The TDRS-A, as a customer/user of these launch systems, is examined and reviewed and lessons learned are noted.
Document ID
19840028157
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Browning, R. K. (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)