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Management of Commercially Generated Radioactive Waste - U.S. ...

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°<br />

6.141<br />

OTV/ORBIT 0.85 AU<br />

INSERTION<br />

STAGE<br />

REENTRY VEHICLE & VENUS (0.7 AU)<br />

PAYLOAD ASSEMBLY<br />

(REENTRY VEHICLE<br />

TOBERECOVERED)<br />

EARTH (1 AU) ORBITAL DEPLOYMENT SERTION<br />

( I\ A 0-AINTO ---<br />

0.86 AU<br />

ORBIT BETWEEN<br />

EARTH AND VENUS<br />

ORBIT INSERTION STAGE/WASTE<br />

LN PAYLOAD RELEASE<br />

INTO LOW OTV RETURNS<br />

EARTH ORBIT TO BE RECOVERED<br />

ORBITAL OPERATIONS<br />

FIGURE 6.1.24. Orbital Operations<br />

After a final systems checkout, the OTV would place the SOIS and its attached waste pay-<br />

load into an Earth escape trajectory. Propulsion would be controlled from the Orbiter, with<br />

backup provided by a ground control station. After propulsion, the OTV would release the<br />

SOIS/waste payload and would return to low Earth orbit for rendezvous with the Orbiter. The<br />

payload would require about 163 days to reach its perihelion at 0.85 astronomical units<br />

(A.U.) about the Sun. (One A.U. is equal to the average distance from the Earth to the Sun.)<br />

Calculations have shown that this orbit would be stable with respect to Earth and Venus for<br />

at least 1 million years.<br />

In case <strong>of</strong> OTV ignition failure, a rescue OTV would be launched to.meet and dock with the<br />

SOIS for propulsion into the escape trajectory. Safety features would be included in the de-<br />

sign <strong>of</strong> this vehicle to prevent reentry <strong>of</strong> the unshielded payload into the Earth's atmosphere<br />

(Bechtel 1979a).<br />

After rendezvous with the OTV, the Shuttle Orbiter would return to the launch site for<br />

refurbishment and use on a later flight. The empty reentry vehicle would also be recovered<br />

and returned with the Shuttle for reuse. The normal elapsed time from launch to return to<br />

the launch site would be 48 hours (Bechtel 1979a).<br />

Systems for tracking the vehicles during launch, earth orbit, and the earth escape tra-<br />

jectory exist. There is also a system for locating and tracking the payload in deep space at<br />

any future time. However, once the proper disposal orbit had been verified, no additional<br />

tracking should be necessary.<br />

SUN

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