OPAL was launched from Orbital Science's OSP Spacelift Vehicle while piggy backing on JAWSAT, a student satellite from the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) and the Center for Aerospace Technology (CAST) at Weber State University. The launch occurred on January 26, 2000 from the Vandenberg AFB in Southern California.

JAWSAT
The JAWSAT mission is a collaboration between the USAFA and the Center for Aerospace Technology (CAST) at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah. The JAWSAT concept of design and operations prescribes Weber State the design and development responsibilities and the AFA the integration, launch, and on-orbit operations responsibilities.

The primary objective of the JAWSAT mission is to provide a satellite that can be used to train cadets in satellite command and control operations. Since orbit maneuvering and attitude determination and control are fundamental to this cadet training, JAWSAT will be equipped with several systems for attitude determination, two pulse plasma thrusters, and a 3-axis stabilization system.

OSP Spacelift Vehicle
The standard Orbital Sciences OSP Spacelift Vehicle configuration is a four-stage, all-solid-fueled, launch vehicle, capable of placing up to an 800-lbs spacecraft into low earth orbit.  OSP offers the user the ability to launch multiple payloads during the mission profile, spreading the cost of the launch vehicle among several different programs.  The Orbital OSP Space Launch Configuration utilitzes the Minuteman II stages 1 and 2, with the Orion 50XL as the third stage.  The Orion 38, avionics structure, and Pegasus based shroud complete the vehicle stack.  Both Orion motors have extensive flight experience from the Pegasus and Taurus programs.

At the twelfth AIAA/USU Conference on Small Satellites, Major Steven Buckley presented a paper on this vehicle entitled, "The Orbital/Suborbital Program (OSP) 'Minotaur' Space Launch Vehicle: Using Surplus ICBM Motors to Achieve Low Cost Space Lift For Small Satellites."

Here is a fact sheet from the US Air Force.