TDRS-E aboard Atlantis during deployment |
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| Operator | NASA |
|---|---|
| Major contractors | TRW USA (LSP) |
| Mission type | Communication |
| Launch date | 2 August 1991 15:02:00 GMT |
| Carrier rocket | Space Shuttle Atlantis STS-43 / IUS |
| Launch site | Kennedy LC-39A |
| Mission duration | 7 years (planned) 18+ years (achieved) |
| Mass | 2,268 kilograms (5,000 lb) |
| Orbital elements | |
| Regime | Geostationary |
| Longitude | 174° West[1] |
TDRS-5, known before launch as TDRS-E, is an American communications satellite which is operated by NASA as part of the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System. It was constructed by TRW is based on a custom satellite bus which was used for all seven first generation TDRS satellites.[2]
It was launched aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis during the STS-43 mission in August 1991. Atlantis launched from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center at 15:02:00 GMT (11:02 local time), on 2 August.[3] TDRS-E was deployed from Atlantis around six hours after launch, and was raised to geostationary orbit by means of an Inertial Upper Stage. It was the only TDRS satellite to be deployed from Atlantis.[3]
The twin-stage solid-propellent Inertial Upper Stage made two burns. The first stage burn occurred shortly after deployment, from Atlantis, and placed the satellite into a geosynchronous transfer orbit. Around six hours later, it reached apogee, and the second stage fired, placing TDRS-E into geosynchronous orbit. At this point it received its operational designation, TDRS-5. It was placed at a position over the equator, 174° West of the Greenwich Meridian,[1] from where it provides communications services to spacecraft in Earth orbit, including the Space Shuttle and International Space Station. Some of its transponders are operated by the Columbia Communications Corporation.[4]
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