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Photo Credits Attributed to NASA/The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU/APL)
Separation from Launch Vehicle
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The dual-payload attach fitting - the mechanism used to hold the TIMED
and Jason-1 spacecraft in place during launch - separates in preparation for
the TIMED spacecraft to be jettisoned from the Delta II launch vehicle. TIMED
is the second of the two spacecraft to be jettisoned.
Within seconds after its separation, TIMED's solar arrays are deployed and
the spacecraft begins detumbling - an action that occurs during the course
of one orbit cycle to help stabilize the spacecraft.
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