RE: [amsat-bb] Two different programs, two different answers..

[tlang@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (Tony Langdon)]

Hello Bill.

20 Apr 00 09:25, you wrote to All:

 BJ> I'm confused about this.  I've used a program for years that ignores
 BJ> drag terms, and it used to never differ from more comprehensive
 BJ> programs by more than a minute, except for MIR. And even with MIR, it
 BJ> is only when MIR has decayed to a low altitude like it was earlier
 BJ> this year.  I say "used to never differ" because I still seem to have
 BJ> some Y2K issues with the program
 BJ> that I can't figure out, but that is another story.  However back to
 BJ> the drag issue, I was of the opinion that except for low altitude sats
 BJ> with significant drag like MIR, that drag could be ignorred if you
 BJ> replace your keps every 2 weeks or so.  Is this wrong? If so, which
 BJ> sats give a problem with drag... ie perhaps I've just been lucky to
 BJ> have only tracked sats for which drag isn't important.

Drag is a real factor, especially at a time like now, when there is a solar
maximum, and the chance for the atmosphere to expand under intense UV radiation
and add a bit of drag to a few satellites.  If it lasts a week or so, the data
should be available to the tracking software.

Tony

.. a 1-10 scale, its a 1/32 scale.
--
|Fidonet:  Tony Langdon 3:633/284.18
|Internet: tlang@freeway.apana.org.au
|
| Standard disclaimer: The views of this user are strictly his own.


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