previous options. For example, the transmitting antenna could be as large as 1- 1.5 m diameter. Importantly also, it would be possible for the experiment to use up to 1.3 kW of Orbiter electrical power, avoiding the need to carry a battery. Thermal dissipation would be easier because the mounting plate acts as a thermal sink and has a radiator area that is much larger than possible with a single GAS. Telemetry could be down-linked at 1.3 MB/s directly to the Earth via the Orbiter communications system (i.e. via TDRSS). Hitchhiker M HH-M offers essentially the same possibility as the HH-G option. However, in this case, the HH-M apparatus can be shared with other users. Therefore, even though the cost of a dedicated HH-M might be as high as $4 million, sharing might make it less expensive to use than a dedicated HH-G. The general configuration of a Hitchhiker M experiment would be similar to that discussed for a Spacelab E-l mission using the USS. 6.3 MASER & MAXUS Sounding Rockets To date, the only Powersat-type experiment to have flown in space was the Microwave Ionosphere Nonlinear Interaction Experiment (MINIX) conducted by the Institute of Space and Astronomical Science in Japan in 1983. The MINIX experiment used ISAS’s S-520 sounding rocket enabling some 6-7 minutes of experiment time. (See also Section 3.4.5.) Currently, ISAS is planning for a second experiment, designated MINIX-2 (although sometimes referred to as METS), in 1992. The principal objectives of this experiment are similar to that of MINIX-1 but will use a new phased array antenna design. The MINIX-2 experiment consists of a “daughter” section containing the receiver and a “mother” section containing the rectenna. (Figure 6.3-1) The mother section always remains attached to the rocket and is recovered. After
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