ORBITAL'S PEGASUS ROCKET SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHES NASA'S HETE-2 SATELLITE
Mission Represents 16th Consecutive Success Since 1996 for the Company's Air-Launched Rocket
30th Pegasus Mission Originates from Kwajalein Missile Range in the Central Pacific Ocean
(Dulles, VA 10 October 2000) - Orbital Sciences Corporation (NYSE: ORB) announced that it successfully launched the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA's) High Energy Transient Explorer-2 (HETE-2) satellite into its targeted orbit aboard the company's Pegasus(r) rocket on Monday, October 9. The mission originated from the Kwajalein Missile Range (KMR), a U.S. Army installation in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, about 4,000 kilometers southwest of Hawaii in the central Pacific Ocean.
At approximately 12:45 a.m. EDT, the company's L-1011 Pegasus carrier aircraft took off from KMR and flew to a predetermined launch point over the Pacific Ocean. The Pegasus rocket was released at approximately 1:40 a.m. and, following a planned five-second free fall, ignited its first stage rocket motor. Approximately 11 minutes later, Pegasus accurately deployed the HETE-2 satellite into a 590 x 650 kilometer orbit inclined 2 degrees to the equator. Preliminary information indicates that the main operating systems of the HETE-2 satellite are operating as planned in the early stages of its mission.
Mr. David W. Thompson, Orbital's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said, "This mission highlights the Pegasus launch system's outstanding record of reliability, as well as its unparalleled mobility. For the HETE-2 mission, our Pegasus team overcame daunting technical and logistical challenges in order to successfully conduct the first equatorial space launch of a small-class launch vehicle. Not only did we ferry the rocket over 6,000 kilometers across the Pacific Ocean, from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, to Kwajalein Missile Range, we also established the mission control center for the launch at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, halfway around the Earth."
Mr. Thompson continued, adding "With the addition of Kwajalein to the list of sites from which the Pegasus rocket has been launched, it is now the only space launch vehicle ever to be launched from six separate sites around the world."
The HETE-2 mission represents the first launch of a commercial rocket from KMR, and the first equatorial launch of a small launch vehicle in the past decade. In fact, among all small launch vehicles, only the Pegasus rocket is ready to conduct equatorial missions because of its ability to be ferried to the appropriate range facilities. The HETE-2 mission was the 30th launch overall in the rocket program's history. It was also the second Pegasus mission of 2000 and extended its series of consecutive successful missions to 16 over a span of four years.
About the Pegasus Rocket
Pegasus is the world's leading launch system for the deployment of small satellites into low-Earth orbit. Its patented air-launch approach, in which the rocket is launched from beneath an L-1011 carrier aircraft over the ocean, reduces cost and provides customers with unparalleled flexibility to operate from virtually anywhere on the planet.
About the HETE-2 Satellite
The 275-pound HETE-2 satellite was built by a team of engineers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as part of an international collaboration sponsored by NASA that involved the U.S., France and Japan. The small satellite carries three scientific instruments that will examine deep space for powerful explosions known as gamma ray bursts (GRBs). The study of the mysterious GRBs could help scientists discover the structure and formation of the early universe.
Orbital is one of the largest space technology and satellite services companies in the world, with 1999 total enterprise revenues (including revenues from unconsolidated affiliates) of approximately $915 million. The company, headquartered in Dulles, Virginia, employs about 5,000 people at major facilities in the U.S., Canada and several overseas locations. Orbital is the world's leading manufacturer of low-cost space systems, including satellites and space robotics, launch vehicles, electronics and sensors, satellite ground systems and related digital infrastructure. Its Magellan subsidiary is a pioneer in satellite-based navigation and communications products for consumer and industrial markets. Through its ORBCOMM and ORBIMAGE affiliates and ORBNAV subsidiary, Orbital is also a major operator of satellite-based networks that provide data communications, high-resolution imagery and automotive information services to customers around the world.
Mission Represents 16th Consecutive Success Since 1996 for the Company's Air-Launched Rocket
30th Pegasus Mission Originates from Kwajalein Missile Range in the Central Pacific Ocean
(Dulles, VA 10 October 2000) - Orbital Sciences Corporation (NYSE: ORB) announced that it successfully launched the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA's) High Energy Transient Explorer-2 (HETE-2) satellite into its targeted orbit aboard the company's Pegasus(r) rocket on Monday, October 9. The mission originated from the Kwajalein Missile Range (KMR), a U.S. Army installation in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, about 4,000 kilometers southwest of Hawaii in the central Pacific Ocean.
At approximately 12:45 a.m. EDT, the company's L-1011 Pegasus carrier aircraft took off from KMR and flew to a predetermined launch point over the Pacific Ocean. The Pegasus rocket was released at approximately 1:40 a.m. and, following a planned five-second free fall, ignited its first stage rocket motor. Approximately 11 minutes later, Pegasus accurately deployed the HETE-2 satellite into a 590 x 650 kilometer orbit inclined 2 degrees to the equator. Preliminary information indicates that the main operating systems of the HETE-2 satellite are operating as planned in the early stages of its mission.
Mr. David W. Thompson, Orbital's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said, "This mission highlights the Pegasus launch system's outstanding record of reliability, as well as its unparalleled mobility. For the HETE-2 mission, our Pegasus team overcame daunting technical and logistical challenges in order to successfully conduct the first equatorial space launch of a small-class launch vehicle. Not only did we ferry the rocket over 6,000 kilometers across the Pacific Ocean, from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, to Kwajalein Missile Range, we also established the mission control center for the launch at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, halfway around the Earth."
Mr. Thompson continued, adding "With the addition of Kwajalein to the list of sites from which the Pegasus rocket has been launched, it is now the only space launch vehicle ever to be launched from six separate sites around the world."
The HETE-2 mission represents the first launch of a commercial rocket from KMR, and the first equatorial launch of a small launch vehicle in the past decade. In fact, among all small launch vehicles, only the Pegasus rocket is ready to conduct equatorial missions because of its ability to be ferried to the appropriate range facilities. The HETE-2 mission was the 30th launch overall in the rocket program's history. It was also the second Pegasus mission of 2000 and extended its series of consecutive successful missions to 16 over a span of four years.
About the Pegasus Rocket
Pegasus is the world's leading launch system for the deployment of small satellites into low-Earth orbit. Its patented air-launch approach, in which the rocket is launched from beneath an L-1011 carrier aircraft over the ocean, reduces cost and provides customers with unparalleled flexibility to operate from virtually anywhere on the planet.
About the HETE-2 Satellite
The 275-pound HETE-2 satellite was built by a team of engineers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as part of an international collaboration sponsored by NASA that involved the U.S., France and Japan. The small satellite carries three scientific instruments that will examine deep space for powerful explosions known as gamma ray bursts (GRBs). The study of the mysterious GRBs could help scientists discover the structure and formation of the early universe.
Orbital is one of the largest space technology and satellite services companies in the world, with 1999 total enterprise revenues (including revenues from unconsolidated affiliates) of approximately $915 million. The company, headquartered in Dulles, Virginia, employs about 5,000 people at major facilities in the U.S., Canada and several overseas locations. Orbital is the world's leading manufacturer of low-cost space systems, including satellites and space robotics, launch vehicles, electronics and sensors, satellite ground systems and related digital infrastructure. Its Magellan subsidiary is a pioneer in satellite-based navigation and communications products for consumer and industrial markets. Through its ORBCOMM and ORBIMAGE affiliates and ORBNAV subsidiary, Orbital is also a major operator of satellite-based networks that provide data communications, high-resolution imagery and automotive information services to customers around the world.
Contact: Barron Beneski, 7034065000, beneski.barron@orbital.com
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