[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > > Gentlefolk, > > << Said parameters, IIRC, define the orbit, but not where in > the orbit the bird will be at any given moment. Not very useful. >> > > Actually, the reduced set is very useful to those attempting to fit an > observation to an orbit for either orbit determination or recognition > purposes.
Hmmm... so what you're saying (reduced to informal terms) is that if an orbital launch operator tells NORAD "it's gonna come from over _there_ going _that_ way" (whatever those numbers might be), then when it shows up sometime that afternoon (especially with a follow-up phone call a few minutes before launch), they can look at it and say "oh, it's that one" (and not even have to get nervous until they figure out it's not hostile after all) ... ... these NORAD guys sound pretty friendly, actually... their requirements are both comprehensible and well-defined. Sounds a lot like the interface we had (by way of PRS) with airspace control at the neighboring military airbase for the KISS launches. (On a different scale, of course...) -dave w _______________________________________________ ERPS-list mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.erps.org/mailman/listinfo/erps-list
