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Flight Profile - Chandra Launch
Approximately 7 hours following launch, Commander Collins and her crew of four will deploy the Boeing-built Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) which is mated to the Chandra telescope, from the orbiter. One hour after deployment, the IUS two-stage solid rocket motor will boost Chandra into a highly-elliptical orbit through a series of controlled burns and maneuvers. One hour later the IUS will separate from Chandra. The observatory's integrated propulsion system will provide the remaining burns to attain a final orbit whose apogee is 140,000 kilometers from Earth - more than one-third of the way from the Earth to the moon.
Photo Credit: Boeing image
Neg. #NASA KSC-99PP-704