Friday / 8 August 2014

ISEE-3 Moon Flyby Set For 10 August

ISEE-3 Lunar Flyby

ISEE-3 Reboot Mission, Privately Funded By ~US$160K Public Campaign, Scheduled To Cross Bow Shock Of Earth Magnetosphere Saturday Afternoon & Fly By Lunar Surface At 12,000km Altitude Sunday 10 Aug – Will Lose Power For 1st Time In Decades While In Lunar Shadow; 35-Year-Old Craft Will Continue On Original Heliocentric Orbit Trajectory To Deep Space, Will Be 15 Years Until Craft Is This Close To Earth Again; Team Will Gather Data From 4 Working Instruments Including Magnetometer; Previously Planned To Fly By Moon At ~50km & Achieve Earth Orbit

Pictured: Reboot Team Leads Dennis Wingo (L), Keith Cowing (R)

Image Credit: D. Wingo, K. Cowing, Spacecollege.org

Friday / 30 May 2014

ISEE-3 Team Achieves Contact,
Close Lunar Flyby Upcoming

ISEE-3 Reboot Project

ISEE-3 Reboot Project Team Will Attempt To Command 36-Year-Old Spacecraft, Fire Engines ASAP; ISEE-3 Is ~250,000km From Where It Should Be, Increasing Possibility Of Moon Impact Without Corrective Maneuvers; Lunar Flyby Trajectory Estimated At 50km-Altitude; Recently Established 2-Way Communication Will Allow For Refinement Of Engine Burn Techniques; Goal Is To Use Moon Gravity To Enter Orbit At Sun-Earth L1, Resume Original Mission To Investigate Solar Wind, Share Data With Public

Image Credit: ISEE-3 Reboot Project