12/3/03 [3 December 2003]
By NORA K. WALLACE
NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
A secret satellite expected to help battlefield commanders in Iraq and
Afghanistan while assisting with other national security concerns blasted into
space early Tuesday from Vandenberg Air Force Base.
With a roar that could be heard as far away as Solvang, and with a glare that
lit up the surrounding area like daylight, the 159-foot-tall Lockheed Martin
Atlas 2AS headed into orbit at 2:04 a.m. from Space Launch Complex 3 East.
The satellite, estimated to cost several billion dollars, will provide
detailed intelligence for the National Reconnaissance Organization. "This
is another national security payload that will
provide important support for military and national leadership," said NRO
spokesman Art Haubold.
The NRO releases no information about such launches, including a satellite's
mission or its cost. But numerous space enthusiasts around the world believe
the payload launched Tuesday is a Naval
Ocean Surveillance System, which could have up to three satellites in one
payload.
"They are believed to detect radio transmissions from ships at sea and
analyze the signals to triangulate on the precise location of the
transmitter," Ted Molczan, a satellite tracker from Toronto, said last
week.
"This enables the U.S. government to locate and track the movements of
foreign vessels of interest, for military and/or intelligence
purposes."
Such intelligence satellites, Mr. Haubold said, were vital during Operation
Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. They "provide continuing
support to our nation's leadership," he said, providing
information the administration needs to make critical decisions.
The predawn launch was reportedly filmed by NBC News for use in one of its
"The Fleecing of America" segments. The segment is expected to
document the role of the NRO in the intelligence community.
The launch also marked the final West Coast launch of an Atlas 2AS rocket. In
the future, Lockheed Martin will use a newly developed booster called the
Atlas 5.
As soon as the rocket had disappeared from view at Vandenberg on Tuesday
morning, International Launch Services spokesman Fran Slimmer said,
"That's 67 in a row for Atlas in 10 years. That's the end of
an era."
Atlas rockets have launched successfully that many times from Vandenberg and
Cape Canaveral in Florida. Now that the final Atlas 2AS has lifted off, the
launchpad will be refurbished for the bigger rocket.
From now on, the NRO will launch its payloads aboard Boeing Delta 4 rockets, a
new type of booster slated for Space Launch Complex 6 next year.
