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kevinforsyth.net
To Reach the High Frontier: A History of U.S. Launch Vehicles
"A valuable contribution to the field of aerospace literature," this book includes an extensive overview of Delta history and development along with chapters on Atlas, Titan, Scout, Space Shuttle, and much more.
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Many other excellent books about spaceflight are recommended here.
15-Apr-03 | SIRTF delay
The Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) has been delayed. Boeing and NASA have raised unspecified concerns over the Delta II-Heavy’s GEM-46 booster motors, which have flown on three Delta III flights but are untested on Delta II. (Spaceflight Now, 10-Apr-03)
According to Boeing, the larger and longer boosters increase the Delta II’s capacity by approximately 19 percent, the largest performance upgrade for Delta II since 1990 (when the GEM-40 motors were introduced). The Delta first stage required beefed-up structure and acoustic blanket modifications to accomodate the motors as well.
At the pad, the standard skin-and-stringer 9.5-foot-diameter fairing is in place, and the program team members in the TCC are monitoring the payload closely. SIRTF has until 7 May to get off the pad, or the vehicle will be destacked and replaced with the Delta II-Heavy for the second Mars Rover, which has a very tight launch window that only comes around every 26 months. (SLC-17B is the only east coast pad that can launch Delta rockets equipped with GEM-46 motors, as its flame trench and other support systems were updated specifically for the heavier motors and their different acoustic signature. SLC-17A, which is scheduled to launch the first Rover on 6 June, is also precluded for the second Rover because the 19-day gap between the two Rover flights is insufficient to stack the Delta and properly prepare a payload with such potential public-interest value.)