Sub-group on the Densification of the Optical Frame
                             Newsletter 2
                           September 2, 1998


Dear Colleagues,
  
  This is the second newsletter of the  Sub-group on the Densification
of the Optical Reference Frame.  I have been in contact with everyone,
with the exception of Jean Souchay.  I have tried the address
souchay@obspm.fr without success.  If any of you has another e-mail address
for him, I would be thankful if you forward it to me.

No one has indicated trouble in viewing the website.  It can be
found at http://aries.usno.navy.mil/ad/dens_wg/dens.html.  If you have not
already, please take a look at it and report any problems or incorrect
information to me.  Under the projects page I have links to several 
different sites, including: the USNO CCD Astrograph program; the USNO Precision
Measuring Machine project; the 2MASS project; the Yale Southern Proper Motions
project; the FAME astrometric satellite project; the DIVA astrometric
satellite project; and WG on the re-measurement of the AC and CdC plates.
Those interested in the details of these are encouraged to visit the sites
or talk to the points-of-contact.  I am anxious to have links to more
projects involving densification of the optical frame.  Send suggestions
to me and I will include them.

One project that you may not know much about is FAME.  This is an American
version of a HIPPARCOS-type satellite.  Current design is to observe
all stars down to 15th magnitude with errors for the brighter stars
at 50 microarcsec or better.  The U.S. Naval Observatory, Naval Research Lab,
and Lockheed-Martin collaborated to submit a proposal for funding to 
NASA under their Medium Class Explorer Mission (MIDEX) announcement.
Four missions are expected to get partial funding; these will be selected
in December 1998 or January 1999.  Two of the four are expected to get
full funding.


  
                                         Sincerely,
  
                                         Sean Urban
                                         U.S. Naval Observatory
                                         September 2, 1998