AeroAstro-built STPSat-1 Satellite Operating Successfully On-orbit

MICROSAT BLITZ

STPSat-1 continues STP's mission to provide access to space for DoD-sponsored experiments. The spacecraft's elegant design incorporated both proven technical design from previous missions and advanced technologies. The satellite construction was tailored for the highly constrained ESPA environment and included advances in electronics packaging, space materials and manufacturing techniques.

by Staff Writers
Ashburn VA (SPX) Apr 18, 2007
AeroAstro reports that STPSat-1 successfully completed Normal Operations Readiness Review (NORR), conducted on 28 March at the Space Development and Test Wing (SDTW) at Kirtland AFB, NM. The NORR marks completion of the on-orbit checkout period that began with STPSat-1's launch on 8 March from Cape Canaveral on an Atlas V rocket. The checkout encompassed complete verification of each spacecraft subsystem's performance, and initialization of the two payload experiments. The checkout period was baselined for 30 days, but was accomplished in less than 3 weeks.

STPSat-1's primary experiment, Spatial Heterodyne Imager for Mesospheric Radicals (SHIMMER), is a high-resolution ultraviolet spectrometer based on the new optical technique known as Spatial Heterodyne Spectroscopy (SHS). SHS facilitates the design of low mass, low power, high throughput spectrometers for space-based remote sensing. The secondary experiment, the Computerized Ionospheric Tomography Receiver in Space (CITRIS), is investigating irregularities that affect propagation of satellite-to-ground links for GPS and communications.

"The STPSat-1 checkout period was accomplished rapidly and smoothly." said Richard Barnisin, AeroAstro's STPSat-1 Program Manager, and Vice President of Space Programs. "Most of the subsystems are performing even better than predicted, and we've confirmed that the experiments are getting good data. The launch sequence and final orbit were near-perfect, providing further verification that the EELV Secondary Payload Adapter (ESPA) is a viable secondary launch alternative."

AeroAstro developed the low-earth orbiting spacecraft under contract to the Department of Defense (DoD) Space Test Program.

Email This Article

MICROSAT BLITZ

Cornell University Chosen To Build Nanosat-4 Flight Experiment

Reston VA (SPX) Apr 04, 2007
The Cornell University student team and their CUSat nanosatellite design has won the University Nanosat Flight Competition Review (FCR). This win moves the Cornell team on to build the Nanosat-4 flight experiment for the Air Force/AIAA University Nanosatellite Program, a national student satellite design and fabrication competition.

DISASTER MANAGEMENT Wireless Sensors Limit Earthquake Damage DigitalGlobe And GeoEye Partner With The USGS In Support Of International Charter Tsunami Emergency In Solomons Declared Over Philippine Survivors Left Feeling Forgotten	CLIMATE SCIENCE Security Council Holds Landmark Debate On Climate Change Want To Monitor Climate Change Pick Up A Penguin Trans Atlantic Rift Not That Great On Global Warming US Pollution Cop Defends Bush Greenhouse Gas Record
EARTH OBSERVATION Scientists Meet To Review Envisat Results After Five Years Of Operations US Uses Landsat Satellite Data To Fight Hunger And Poverty NOAA And NASA Restore Climate Sensor To Upcoming NPP Satellite High-Resolution Images Herald New Era In Earth Sciences	ENERGY TECH Shanghai To Shut Down 29 Coal Power Plants By 2010 Co2 Storage In Coal Can Be Predicted Better UCLA Chemists Design Lowest-Density Crystals Ever For Use In Clean Energy Researchers Find Large Is Smart When It Comes To Cities
EPIDEMICS Bird Flu Genome Study Shows New Strains As new Infections Spread Ebola Outbreaks Killing Thousands Of Gorillas And Chimpanzees Total Hepatitis C Cure Possible HIV Market To Top 10 Billion Dollars	FLORA AND FAUNA New Undersea Vent Suggests Snake-Headed Mythology Misclassified For Centuries Medicinal Leeches Found To Be Three Distinct Species Russia To Make Polar Bear Hunting Legal Climate Change Could Trigger Boom And Bust Population Cycles Leading To Extinction
FROTH AND BUBBLE Coal Burning Having A Devastating Impact On Rural Chinese Chinese Economy Reaching Limits Plastic That Degrades In Seawater A Boon For Cruise Industry DHS Rolls Out New Chemical Plant Regulations	ABOUT US Liver Regeneration May Be Simpler Than Previously Thought Rhesus Macaque Genome Helps Illuminate What Makes Us Human Why The Rich Get Richer It's Never Too Late To Interrupt The Aging Process

The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2006 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA PortalReports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additionalcopyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement