Foundation, and Environmental Protection Agency. NRC was assigned AEC's licensing and regulatory responsibilities. (PD, 20 Jan 75, 54; ERDA Release 75-1; ERDA Fact Sheet)

16 January-8 February: U.S. and U.S.S.R. Apollo-Soyuz Test Project working groups held their last major meeting in the U.S. before the scheduled July launches. The five working groups included 80 Soviet aerospace specialists led by Academician Boris N. Petrov and ASTP Technical Director for the U.S.S.R. Konstantin D. Bushuyev. Working Group 3, Soviet specialists in docking systems, arrived 16 Jan. and went directly to Rockwell International Corp. in California for joint tests of the docking system alignment pin and socket. Following the tests, the group returned to JSC to review the results of those tests and others made earlier in Moscow.

NASTRAN to analyze Space Shuttle structures. Recipients of the awards included 12 NASA and 12 contractor employees. (NASA Release 75-13) 16 January-8 February: U.S. and U.S.S.R. Apollo-Soyuz Test Project working groups held their last major meeting in the U.S. before the scheduled July launches. The five working groups included 80 Soviet aerospace specialists led by Academician Boris N. Petrov and ASTP Technical Director for the U.S.S.R. Konstantin D. Bushuyev. Working Group 3, Soviet specialists in docking systems, arrived 16 Jan. and went directly to Rockwell International Corp. in California for joint tests of the docking system alignment pin and socket. Following the tests, the group returned to JSC to review the results of those tests and others made earlier in Moscow.

On 20 Jan. a portion of Working Group 1-for experiments, trajectories, and contingencies plans-arrived at JSC to prepare for joint simulations scheduled for March. Group 4, for communications systems, also arrived to review the results of independent U.S. and Soviet tests of the flight communications system. The latter group-accompanied by Dr. Glynn S. Lunney, U.S. ASTP Technical Director, and Prof. Bushuyev-then traveled to Kennedy Space Center 3 Feb. to make electromagnetic radio and TV compatibility tests.

The remaining Soviet specialists arrived in the U.S. on 27 Jan. Working Group 2, for control systems and docking targets, prepared contingency-control modes for the mission, and Working Group 5 prepared the final report on the compatibility of ASTP life-support systems. Group 5 also certified the equipment to be transferred between the two spacecraft.

Although a portion of Group 1 would remain in the U.S. through crew training scheduled for 11 Feb., most of the Soviet contingent returned to the Soviet Union 8 Feb. The next major meeting for the working groups was scheduled for mid-May in Moscow. (JSČ Release 75-02; Spaceport News, 6 Feb 75, 3)

17 January: A request for proposals for integrated electronic assemblies (IEA) for the Space Shuttle's solid-rocket boosters had been issued by Marshall Space Flight Center, MSFC announced. The proposals would be for design, development, test and evaluation, fabrication, and assembly of 33 IEAS. The Space Shuttle would carry two refurbishable IEAS, one forward and one aft, to route commands from the Orbiter to the thrust-vector control system to release the nosecap and frustum,

jettison the solid-rocket motor nozzle, detach parachutes, and turn on the recovery aids. (MSFC Release 75-11)

18 January: New members of the House of Representatives Committee on Science and Technology, led by Committee Chairman Olin E. Teague (D-Tex.), made an orientation tour of Kennedy Space Center. In addition to visits to Launch Complexes 36 and 39, the KSC industrial area, and the Visitors Information Center, the committee members viewed the Apollo spacecraft being readied for the July U.S.-U.S.S.R. Apollo-Soyuz Test Project and the Viking lander being prepared for the August twin mission to Mars. The members also received special briefings on Center activities. (KSC Release 11-75)

20 January: The appointments of four senior European Space Research Organization directors became effective. The appointments were Professor of Engineering Massimo Trella (Italy) as Technical Operator, Bernard Deloffre (France) as Director of the Spacelab program, Walter Luksch (West Germany) as Director of the Communications Satellite Programme, and John Hawkes (United Kingdom) as Head of Development and Technology at ESRO's Space Research and Technology Center (ESTEC) in the Netherlands. (ESRO Release, 20 Jan 75)

• An interagency agreement between NASA and Department of Interior to use NASA technology for mineral extraction was announced by Secretary of the Interior Rogers C. B. Morton. Funded and directed by DOI and combining efforts of NASA and contractor scientists, the project would apply NASA experience in developing of systems for manned and automated operations in hostile environments to demonstrate new coal-mining technology. NASA has designated Marshall Space Flight Center as the lead NASA Center. (NASA Release 75-17)

21 January: The current fleet of supersonic transports-including the 16 Anglo-French Concordes and 14 Soviet Tu-144s flying or scheduled for service-would cause minimal damage to the ozone layer, Dr. Alan J. Grobecker, Director of the Dept. of Transportation's Climatic Impact Assessment Program, announced at a press briefing. Citing a 3-yr DOT study, "The Effects of Stratospheric Pollution by Aircraft," Dr. Grobecker said it would require 125 Concordes flying 4.5 hr daily to cause a minimally detectable change in the ozone layer. However, the study concluded that future expansion of stratospheric jet fleets should be carefully monitored.

Recommendations made by the study included development of engines to meet specific nitrogen oxide-emission standards, development of low-sulfur aviation fuels, and establishment of stratospheric air-quality standards and engine-emission regulations. (AP, NYT, 22 Jan 75, 33; Robinson, Av Wk, 27 Jan 75, 16-17) 22-25 January: NASA launched Landsat 2 (Landsat-B), formerly called Earth Resources Technology Satellite (ERTS-B), from Western Test Range at 9:56 am PST on a two-stage Thor-Delta booster supplemented by nine strap-on rockets. The satellite entered a near-polar orbit with a 918.23-km apogee, 912.89-km perigee, 103.32-min period, and 99.09° inclination. Primary objective of the mission was to acquire multispectral imagery over the U.S. and foreign countries in quantity sufficient to improve remote-sensing interpretative techniques and to further demonstrate the practical application of Landsat

data. Secondary objectives were to acquire sufficient multispectral coverage over the U.S. to supply data requirements for the Applications System Verification Tests for at least 1 yr, to acquire multispectral coverage for at least 2 yr over the major agricultural areas of the world to illustrate further applications of Landsat imagery for crop inventory, and to demonstrate successful operation of the Data Collection System.

A 3-day delay in the launch changed the initial orbital phasing of Landsat 2 relative to Landsat 1 (launched as Erts 1 on 23 July 1972) into a 12- to 6-day repeat cycle instead of the planned 9-day cycle. However, an orbital correction maneuver beginning 27 Jan. and ending 6 Feb. altered phasing to a 9-day repeat cycle. The payload separated from the launch vehicle 50 min 3 sec after launch, followed by solar-panel deployment and earth acquisition using the attitudecontrol system. The command system was turned on automatically, permitting activation of the payload by ground stations. During the night of 22-23 Jan. the mechanical integrity of the wideband video tape recorder was verified, Data-Collection System (DCS) activated, and data-collection platform experiment data transmitted. By 12:00 pm EST 23 Jan. all spacecraft systems were operating and by 25 Jan. the wideband transmitter, wideband video tape recorder, multispectral scanner (MSS), and return-beam vidicon (RBV) were turned on, and operating normally.

Teaming up with Landsat 1, the 953-kg Landsat 2 would provide repetitive coverage of almost the entire earth to demonstrate the practical benefits of resources management from space for NASA in cooperation with the Dept. of Agriculture, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Dept. of the Interior, Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and various state, local, and foreign organizations. Experiments included the cooperative NASA-DOA-NOAA Large Area Crop Inventory (LACIE), which combined crop-acreage measurements derived from Landsat data with meteorological information from ground stations and NOAA satellites to assess crop yields and make production forecasts. During the first yr of operation, LACIE would concentrate on U.S.-grown wheat, but the experiment would later be expanded to other crops and other regions.

Other experiments included land-use survey and mapping; mineral resources, geological, structural, and land-form surveys; water resources studies; marine and ocean surveys; meteorological and environmental studies; and interpretative techniques development.

Data were being transmitted to three NASA tracking and dataacquisition facilities at Fairbanks, Al.; Goldstone, Calif.; and Greenbelt, Md. In addition, Canada and Brazil operated Landsat ground data-acquisition stations and Italy and Iran were constructing similar facilities. Data received from the satellite were sent to the NASA Data Processing Facility at Goddard Space Flight Center where 1300 images, covering 45 million sq km, could be processed each week. The data would then be forwarded to the Federal Data Center and made available to the public.

The Landsat mission was part of a U.S. program to develop remotesensing methods for improved management of earth's resources. In addition to Landsat 1 and 2, the program included remote-sensor

instrument development; data-analysis research using data from spacecraft, aircraft, and ground-truth sites; low-, intermediate-, and high-altitude aircraft flights; and Earth Resources Experiment Package (EREP) experiments completed during the 1973 manned Skylab missions. (NASA MORs, 9, 23 Jan 75; NASA Releases 74-329, 75-31) 22 January: NASA's Oso 5 Orbiting Solar Observatory began its 7th yr in earth orbit. Launched 22 Jan. 1969 to study the sun and its influence on earth's atmosphere, Oso 5 had completed more than 34 000 orbits. It was the fifth of eight spacecraft launched in the OSO program to observe the sun during most of its 11-yr solar cycle. Oso 5 had been shut down 3 yr after launch but was reactivated in July 1974 after decay of the orbit of Oso 7 (launched 29 Sept. 1971). Oso 5, which had a planned lifetime of 6 mo, was obtaining data on the frequency and extent of eruptions on the sun's surface. (NASA Release 75-46) 23 January: The Air Force's prototype B-1 strategic bomber successfully completed its second flight test at Air Force Flight Test Center. Primary objectives of the 3-hr 21-min flight included evaluation of the aircraft's wing sweep control system, flying qualities in the initial climb, and power approach configuration. The auxiliary power unit was also evaluated and air-start tests were made.

Following takeoff, the B-1 climbed to 3050 m, where its landing gear, flaps, and slats were retracted. After flying at low speeds with the wings in the full forward 15° position, the wings were swept 25°, and the aircraft climbed to 4900 m and conducted air-start tests at mach 0.7. The prototype then slowed to 463 km per hr and its speed brake was checked in a descent to traffic-pattern altitude. The B-1 then landed safely at AFFTC. (AFSC Newsreview, March 75) The Federal Communications Commission approved a plan for International Business Machines Corp. and Communications Satellite Corp.'s Comsat General subsidiary to form a domestic satellite company with a third company as long as no partner owned less than 10% or more than 49% of the stock. However, a plan in which IBM would replace Lockheed Aircraft Corp. and MCI Communications Corp. as Comsat's partner and own 55% was rejected. The FCC stated that this plan would give IBM too much power over the specialized communications business.

Other alternatives suggested by the FCC included a plan whereby IBM and Comsat could independently enter the communications satellite business or Comsat could join another consortium without IBM. Another alternative was that Comsat, which was not permitted to deal directly with the public, could lease space communications circuits to IBM under an arrangement similar to the one Comsat had with American Telephone & Telegraph Co.

Whatever the arrangement, FCC ruled, IBM must establish a separate corporation for its satellite operations. (FCC Memorandum Opinion and Order 75-156; FCC Release 46281; DJ, W Post, 24 Jan 75, D7; W Star-News, 24 Jan 75, F21)

Ground was broken for Marshall Space Flight Center's x-ray telescope test facility for the High Energy Astronomy Observatory (HEAO) program. The facility, which would cost $4 million including equipment, would be used to test instruments for the HEAO program as well as to calibrate rocket payloads for x-ray stellar studies and

make advance telescope calibrations. The HEAO program included three unmanned scientific satellites to be launched into low earth orbit between 1977 and 1979 to study the invisible light of x-rays, gamma rays, and cosmic rays. (Marshall Star, 29 Jan 75, 4) 24 January: Studies of the heavy particle cosmic-ray exposure received by the astronauts during the nine Apollo lunar orbital missions revealed a significant variation in exposure as a function of the amount of shielding and the phase of the solar cycle, Science magazine reported. The command module pilot, who remained in the spacecraft while the two other crew members landed on the moon, had received the least exposure. The ankle, the least shielded part of the body, received a higher exposure than the chest, which had greater shielding. A sharp rise in exposure had been evident beginning with Apollo 14 when mission times increased. Observed variations in flux from mission to mission-the flux during Apollo 16 and 17 was 2.4 times higher than Apollo 8 through 12-was attributed to solar modulation of the primary cosmic ray beam.

Data obtained during the Apollo missions would be used for planning long-range missions and for estimating expected biological damage. (Benton et al., Science, Vol. 187, 263-5)

The U.S.S.R. commanded the retrorockets aboard Salyut 3 (launched 25 June 1974) to fire, putting the orbital workshop on a descent trajectory. After 7 mo in space, it reentered and burned up over the western part of the Pacific Ocean. After a 16-day visit to Salyut 3 in July 1974 by a two-man crew aboard Soyuz 14, a second crew launched 26 Aug. 1974 aboard Soyuz 15 had failed, in several attempts, to dock with the station and returned to earth after 48 hr in space. (Tass, FBIS-Sov, 24 Jan 75, U1)

27 January: NASA Black Brant VC sounding rockets would be used to carry materials-processing experiments as a low-cost way of expanding observations made during the 1973-1974 Skylab missions, NASA announced. Three flights a year aboard the sounding rockets were planned from 1975 through 1980 to provide a better understanding of material behavior during melting, solidification, and heat treatment without the effects of gravity. Although the sounding rockets would provide only 6 min of low gravity-one ten-thousandth of the gravity on earth-rocket missions were the only way to get low-gravity materials-processing data between the July 1975 manned ApolloSoyuz Test Project and the Space Shuttle flights in the 1980s. (NASA Release 75-12)

Dr. James C. Fletcher, NASA Administrator, and New York City mayor Abraham D. Beame met in New York to review NASA-developed safety standards for handling liquefied natural gas. Following a 1973 gas storage tank fire that killed 40 persons, New York officials had asked NASA to use its experience in handling highly volatile rocket fuels to help the city establish a comprehensive risk-management plan to design, construct, and operate natural gas facilities. The plan, developed at Kennedy Space Center and incorporated into New York City Fire Department operating procedures, identified liquid gas risks, controlled the risks through redundant fail-safe techniques, and set up criteria for discussions to eliminate or accept certain risks.

Also discussed was the new fiberglass and aluminum breathing system developed at Johnson Space Center and being tested by