USA-193, also known as NRO Launch 21 (NROL-21 or simply L-21), was a United States military reconnaissance satellite (radar imaging) launched on 14 December 2006. It was the first launch conducted by the United Launch Alliance (ULA). Owned by the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), the craft's exact function and purpose were classified. On 21 February 2008, it was destroyed as a result of Operation Burnt Frost.
Design USA-193 was part of the NRO's Future Imagery Architecture (FIA), which was begun in 1997 to produce a fleet of inexpensive reconnaissance satellites, but has become the agency's most spectacular failure. USA-193 was initially developed by Boeing, which won the contract in 1999, beating out Lockheed Martin with proposals for innovative electro-optics and radar. But after cost overruns, delays, and parts failures, NRO sent the contract to Lockheed, which built USA-193 around the Boeing radar design. Lockheed Martin and Boeing both supported the launch, the first in the joint effort known as the United Launch Alliance. USA-193 weighed about 2,300 kg (5,100 lb), with a body thought to be 4.6 m (15 ft) long and 2.4 m (7 ft 10 in) wide, estimates based on the maximal Delta II payload. With the radar antenna extended, USA-193 was about the size of a basketball court (~30 × 15 m).
Launch data Launch: 14 December 2006 at 21:00:00 UTC Launch vehicle: United Launch Alliance Delta II-7920 launch vehicle Launch site: Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, United States Launch facility: Space Launch Complex 2W Orbit data: not officially available, as spy satellites often change position and do not have regular orbits. Reported by amateur observers to be (perigee, apogee, inclination): 349 km × 365 km × 58.48° after launch, 255 km × 268 km × 58.48° on 11 February 2008, 244 km × 261 km × 58.50° on 19 February 2008. The orbit was decaying at an increasing rate.
Malfunction and orbital decay The satellite entered orbit, but lost contact with the ground within hours. In late January 2008, reports from anonymous U.S. officials indicated a U.S. spy satellite, later confirmed as USA-193, was in a deteriorating orbit and was expected to crash into Earth within weeks. This came as no surprise to amateur satellite watchers, who had been predicting the deorbit of the satellite for some time. The satellite malfunctioned shortly after deployment and was intentionally destroyed 14 months later on 21 February 2008 by a modified SM-3 missile fired from the U.S. Navy warship USS Lake Erie (CG-70), stationed west of Hawaii. The event highlighted growing distrust between the U.S. and China, and was viewed by some to be part of a wider "arms race" in space involving the U.S., China, and Russia. It was the first launch by United Launch Alliance since it was formed in December 2006, and the first Delta II launch since ULA acquisition.
Hazardous materials on-board The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) reports indicate that the satellite contained the hazardous materials hydrazine and beryllium. Though there was some speculation that the satellite might have a "nuclear" power core, i.e. a radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG), the FEMA report indicates otherwise. On 29 January 2008, an Associated Press story quoted U.S. Air Force General Gene Renuart as saying that contingency plans were being made, since intact pieces of the satellite "might re-enter into the North American area". In respecting the Space Liability Convention, the United States vowed to pay for any damage or destruction caused by their failed satellite.
Destruction
Planning for the destruction of USA-193 with a missile reportedly began on 4 January 2008, with President Bush approving the plan on 12 February 2008, at an expected cost of US$40 million to US$60 million. The task force had as its goal to "rupture the fuel tank to dissipate the approximately 453 kg (999 lb) of hydrazine, a hazardous fuel, which could pose a danger to people on Earth, before it entered into Earth's atmosphere".
On 14 February 2008, U.S. officials announced the plan to destroy USA-193 before atmospheric reentry, stating that the intention was "saving or reducing injury to human life". They said that if the hydrazine tank fell to Earth, it "could spread a toxic cloud roughly the size of two football fields". General James Cartwright confirmed that the United States Navy was preparing to launch an SM-3 missile to destroy the satellite, at an altitude of 247 km (153 mi), shortly before it entered Earth's atmosphere. On 21 February 2008, at 03:26 UTC an SM-3 missile was fired from the Ticonderoga-class missile cruiser USS Lake Erie (CG-70) and intercepted USA-193 about 247 km (153 mi) above the Pacific Ocean. The satellite was traveling with a velocity of 28,000 km/h (17,000 mph), or 7.8 km/s (4.8 mi/s). The velocity of the impact was about 35,000 km/h (22,000 mph). The United States Department of Defense (DoD) expressed a "high degree of confidence" that the fuel tank was hit and destroyed. The satellite's remnants were expected to burn up over the course of the next 40 days, with most of the satellite's mass re-entering the atmosphere within 48 hours of the missile strike. U.S. officials denied that the action was intended to prevent sensitive technology falling into foreign hands and also denied that it was a response to the 2007 Chinese anti-satellite missile test. This was not the first time the United States shot down one of its own satellites; the Air Force had shot down a satellite in 1985. Although the U.S. had objected to the earlier Chinese test of an anti-satellite (ASAT) weapon, U.S. officials said there was "no parallel" with that test. The Chinese test destroyed a target in a high, stable orbit, leaving a large amount of space debris in orbit, while the destruction of USA-193 in a much lower orbit would create debris that would likely deorbit within weeks.
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