Please explain the purpose of operation: |
Orbital Sciences Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems, Inc. (NGIS) launched and operates the NG-11 Cygnus spacecraft as part of the NASA Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) program. The Cygnus mission includes launch, orbit raising maneuvers, approach and berthing with the International Space Station (ISS), unberthing and departure from the ISS, followed by orbit maneuvering, and finally controlled destructive re-entry into the Earths atmosphere. Destructive re-entry is anticipated to be up to 9 months after separation from the ISS. During the period between ISS departure and re-entry, the Cygnus spacecraft will utilize a NanoRacks CubeSat Satellite Deployer (NRCSD) to deploy microsats. The cubesats owners are responsible for obtaining their STA. Spacecraft telemetry is transmitted during all phases of mission operations. An STA is requested for the Cygnus spacecraft at the direction of NASA and the NTIA due to the short duration of the mission and the need for close coordination within the necessary frequency bands.
This STA is consistent with the FCC/NTIA policies developed during the STA application process for previous CRS Cygnus spacecrafts.
Telemetry links include:
1) S-Band Single Access (SSA) and S-Band Multiple Access (SMA) spread spectrum return link operation with NASA TDRS.
2) High data rate downlink operation with mission Ground Stations
3) A Cygnus to ISS link for proximity operations will be used during the mission.
The transmitters supporting these links are described below:
The Cygnus spacecraft configuration will comprise of two L-3 Cincinnati Electronics (L-3 CE) transmitters (primary & redundant-backup) operating at 2287.5 MHz in TDRS mode and it will also provide telemetry downlinks at 3 Mbps and 6 Mbps. Two additional transmitters (primary & redundant-backup), also procured from L-3 CE, operating at 2203.2 MHz will be used for the Cygnus to ISS proximity communication link. These transmitters will meet all STA parameters and conditions as compiled with previous CRS STA applications. |