ISEE-1

International Sun-Earth Explorer 1
ISEE-1
Names Explorer 56, ISEE-1
Mission type study Earth's magnetic field and the solar wind
Operator NASA
COSPAR ID 1977-102A
SATCAT no. 10422
Spacecraft properties
Launch mass 340 kg (750 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date 13:53, October 22, 1977 (1977-10-22T13:53)
Rocket Delta-2914
Launch site Cape Canaveral LC-17B
End of mission
Decay date September 26, 1987 (1987-09-26)
Orbital parameters
Reference system Geocentric
Eccentricity 0.91
Perigee 763 kilometers (474 mi)
Apogee 137,531 kilometers (85,458 mi)
Inclination 30.38°
Period 3556.8 min
Epoch October 22, 1977

The International Sun-Earth Explorer 1 (ISEE-1, or Explorer 56) was a 340-kg space probe used to study magnetic fields near the Earth.[1] ISEE-1 was a spin-stabilized spacecraft and based on the design of the prior IMP (Interplanetary Monitoring Platform) series of spacecraft.[1] ISEE-1 and ISEE-2 were launched on October 22, 1977, and they re-entered on September 26, 1987.[2][2]

Mission

International Sun Earth Explorers Orbits

The space probe was part of a program consisting of three spacecraft: a mother/daughter pair (ISEE-1 and ISEE-2) and the ISEE-3 spacecraft (later renamed to International Cometary Explorer). The program was a cooperative mission between NASA and ESRO (later ESA) designed to study the interaction between the Earth's magnetic field and the solar wind. At least 32 institutions were involved, and the focus was on understanding magnetic fields.[1] ISEE-1 (a.k.a. Explorer 56) and ISEE-3 were built by NASA, while ISEE-2 was built by ESA. All three had complimentary instruments supported by the same group of over 100 scientists.[1]

Orbit

ISEE-1 and ISEE-2 remained near the Earth. ISEE-3 was the first spacecraft to be placed in a halo orbit at the Earth-Sun Lagrangian points L1 and it was later launched into a heliocentric orbit.[1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "ISEE - eoPortal Directory - Satellite Missions". Directory.eoportal.org. Retrieved 2014-03-12.
  2. 1 2 "NASA - NSSDC - Spacecraft - Details". Nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov. Retrieved 2014-03-12.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.