METEOR-M or METEOR-M1, a Russian meteorology satellite, launched as a primary payload on a Soyuz 2-1b rocket from Baikonur on 2009 September 17 at 15:55 UT. The 2,700-kg spacecraft has a service life of five years and will operate in a polar orbit at an altitude of 830 km. The satellite is designed to gather data for weather forecasts, to monitor the Earth's ozone layer and radiation conditions in the upper atmosphere, as well as to provide information on ice floes for maritime shipping in the polar regions. The satellite carries six instruments including imagers, sounders and a radar.
Source: SPACEWARN Bulletin Number 671
STERKH 2 is a civilian search and rescue beacon relay satellite launched as a secondary payload on a Soyuz 2-1b rocket from Baikonur on 2009 September 17 at 15:55 UT. The satellite joins the COSPAS-SARSAT international satellite system which detect distress beacons and relay the information to emergency responders.
Source: SPACEWARN Bulletin Number 671
FREGAT/IRIS, a Russian technology demonstration satellite, was launched as a secondary payload on a Soyuz 2-1b rocket from Baikonur on 2009 September 17 at 15:55 UT. IRIS (Inflatable and Rigidizable Structure) consists of two inflatable panels mounted on the Fregat upper stage.
Source: SPACEWARN Bulletin Number 671
TATIANA 2, a Russian education and technology demonstration microsatellite, was launched as a secondary payload on a Soyuz 2-1b rocket from Baikonur on 2009 September 17 at 15:55 UT. The 98-kg satellite has UV and visual (red) photomultipliers, a scintillation detector and a spectrometer to study high-energy transient events in Earth's atmosphere.
Source: SPACEWARN Bulletin Number 671
UGATUSAT, a Russian education and technology demonstration microsatellite, was launched as a secondary payload on a Soyuz 2-1b rocket from Baikonur on 2009 September 17 at 15:55 UT. The roughly 30-kg satellite will make Earth observations with a resolution of 50 m.
Source: SPACEWARN Bulletin Number 671
SUMBANDILA or SUMBANDILASAT, a South African remote-sensing satellite, was launched as a secondary payload on a Soyuz 2-1b rocket from Baikonur on 2009 September 17 at 15:55 UT. Data from the 81-kg satellite will be used for agriculture monitoring, infrastructure mapping, disaster response, population measurement, and water management. The primary instrument on board is a multispectral imager with a resolution of 6.25 m.
Source: SPACEWARN Bulletin Number 671
BLITS, a 7.5-kg spherical satellite, was launched as a secondary payload on a Soyuz 2-1b rocket from Baikonur on 2009 September 17 at 15:55 UT. The satellite is covered in polished glass and will be used as a retroreflector for laser-ranging experiments.
Source: SPACEWARN Bulletin Number 671
|
Dr. T.S. Kelso [TS.Kelso@celestrak.com] Last updated: 2009 October 11 20:04 UTC Accessed 984 times since 2000 December 16 |