Dynamics Explorer
| Explorer 62 (DE-1) | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Type: | Research satellite |
| Country: |
 United States
|
| Operator: |
 NASA
|
| COSPAR-ID : | 1981-070A |
| Mission dates | |
| Dimensions: | 424 kg |
| Size: | 137 cm × 115 cm |
| Begin: | August 3, 1981 at 09:56 UTC |
| Starting place: | Vandenberg AFB SLC-2W |
| Launcher: | Delta-3913 D-155 |
| Status: | in orbit, out of order |
| Orbit data | |
| Rotation time : | 408.5 min |
| Orbit inclination : | 88.49 ° |
| Apogee height : | 23,264 km |
| Perigee height : | 528 km |
| Explorer 63 (DE-2) | |
|---|---|
| Type: | Research satellite |
| Country: |
United States
|
| Operator: |
NASA
|
| COSPAR-ID : | 1981-070B |
| Mission dates | |
| Dimensions: | 415 kg |
| Size: | 137 cm × 115 cm |
| Begin: | August 3, 1981 at 09:56 UTC |
| Starting place: | Vandenberg AFB SLC-2W |
| Launcher: | Delta-3913 D-155 |
| Status: | burned up on February 19, 1983 |
| Orbit data | |
| Rotation time : | 169.4 min |
| Orbit inclination : | 90.00 ° |
| Apogee height : | 996 km |
| Perigee height : | 298 km |
The Dynamics Explorer (short: DE) project consisted of two satellites, DE-1 and DE-2 (also DE-A and DE-B or Explorer 62 and Explorer 63 ). They belonged to the American Explorer program of NASA on. Both spacecraft were research satellites and were used to study the interaction between plasma and the magnetosphere and the ionosphere .
Equipment and transmission
DE-1
DE-1 (at high altitude) was using an elliptical orbit that was selected to:
- Perform measurements ranging from the hot magnetospheric plasma through the plasma sphere to the cool ionosphere;
- To do global imaging of the northern lights , wave measurements in the heart of the magnetosphere and cross their field lines at multiple earth radii;
- To operate measurements for significant periods along a magnetic flux tube.
The spacecraft was a short prism with a diameter of 137 cm and a height of 115 cm. The antennas measure 200 m from one tip to the other in the XY plane, and only 9 m in the Z axis. Two 6 meter booms were attached for remote measurements. Power was supplied via a solar cell array that was mounted on the side and on the end plates. The spacecraft was spin stabilized with the spin axis perpendicular to the orbital plane and the spin rate at 10 ± 0.1 / min.
A pulse code modulation (PCM) telemetry data system was used, operating in real time or in a tape recorder mode. The data were acquired with closely coordinated operations of the various instruments, the two satellites and supporting experiments. The data captured by the instruments was temporarily stored on tape recorders prior to transmission at an 8: 1 playback-to-record ratio. Additional operational flexibility enabled a playback-to-record ratio of 4: 1. The primary data rate was 16,384 bits per second. Because instructions were stored in an instruction storage unit, spacecraft operations were not in real time except for the transmission of broadband analog data from the plasma wave instrument.
DE-2
DE-2 (at low altitude) complemented the high altitude of DE-1 and was placed in orbit with a sufficiently low perigee to allow measurements of neutral composition, temperature and wind. The apogee was high enough to enable measurements above the interaction regions of suprathermal ions and also plasma flow measurements at the feet of the magnetospheric field lines.
The general shape of the spacecraft was a short prism, 137 cm in diameter and 115 cm in height. The triaxial antennas were 23 m long from one tip to the other. A 6 meter boom was provided for remote measurements. Power was supplied by a solar cell array that charged two 6 ampere-hour nickel-cadmium batteries. The spacecraft was triaxially stabilized with the yaw axis aligned to the center of the earth with an accuracy of up to 1 degree. The spin axis was perpendicular to the orbit plane within 1 degree with a spin rate of one revolution per revolution. The plasma instrument was mounted on a uniaxial scanning platform that rotated around the spin axis.
A PCM telemetry data system was also used, operating in real time or in tape recorder mode. The data were acquired with closely coordinated operations of the various instruments, the two satellites and supporting experiments. The measurements were temporarily saved on playback at an 8: 1 playback-to-record ratio. Because instructions were also stored in an instruction storage unit, spacecraft operations were not in real time.
Start and operation
The two twin satellites were launched on August 3, 1981 with a 3913 series Delta rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base , launch pad 2W. After two days, the two Dynamics Explorer went into operation. The DE-1 operated for more than 9 years until operations ended on October 22, 1990. It remained active in orbit for half a year until it was shut down on February 28, 1991. Its mission was a complete success, but the DE-2 had problems from the start. After a year in orbit, power generation failed. He was still working for a few weeks when the batteries failed. The second Dynamics Explorer burned up on February 19, 1983.
Web links
- Dynamics Explorer in the Encyclopedia Astronautica (English)
- Dynamics Explorer 1 in the NSSDCA Master Catalog (English)
- Dynamics Explorer 2 in the NSSDCA Master Catalog (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Dynamics Explorer 2 on N2YO.
Explorer 1 x 2 x 3 x 4 x 5 x S-1 x 6 (S-2) x 7 (S-1a) x S-46 x 8 (S-30) x S-56 x 9 (S-56a) · S-45 · 10 (P-14) · 11 (S-15) · S-45a · S-55 · 12 (EPE-A) · 13 (S-55) · 14 (EPE-B) · 15 ( EPE-C) · 16 (S-55 b) · 17 (AE-A) · 18 (IMP-A) · 19 (AD-A) · BE-A · 20 (IE-A) · 21 (IMP-B) · 22 (BE-B) · 23 (S 55c) · 24 (AD-B) · 25 (IE-B) · 26 (EPE-D) · 27 (BE-C) · 28 (IMP-C) · 29 (GEOS-A) x 30 (SE-A) x 31 (DME-A) x 32 (AE-B) x 33 (IMP-D) x 34 (IMP-F) x 35 (IMP-E) x 36 (GEOS-B) x 37 (SE-B) x 38 (RAE-A) x 39 (AD-C) x 40 (IE-C) x 41 (IMP-G) x 42 (SAS-A) x 43 ( IMP-H) x 44 (SE-C) x 45 (SSS-A) x 46 (MTS-A) x 47 (IMP-I) x 48 (SAS-B) x 49 (RAE-B) x 50 (IMP -J) · 51 (AE-C) · 52 (IE-D) · 53 (SAS-C) · 54 (AE-D) · 55 (AE-e) · DAD-A · DAD B · 56 (ISEE- 1) · 57 (IUE) · 58 (HCMM) · 59 (ISEE-3 / ICE) · 60 (SAGE) · 61 (magsat) · 62 (DE-A) · 63 (DE-B) · 64 (SME) · 65 (CCE) · 66 (COBE) · 67 (EUVE) · 68 (SAMPEX) · 69 (RXTE) · 70 (FAST) · 71 (ACE) · 72 (SNOE) · 73 (TRACE) · 74 (SWAS) · 75 (WIRE) · 76 (TERRIERS) · 77 (FUSE) · 78 ( IMAGE) · 79 (HETE-2) · 80 (WMAP) · 81 (RHESSI) · 82 (chipsat) · 83 (GALEX) · 84 (Swift) · 85 (THEMIS-A) · 86 (THEMIS-B) · 87 (THEMIS-C) · 88 (THEMIS-D) · 89 (THEMIS-e) · 90 (AIM) · 91 (IBEX) · 92 (WISE) · 93 (NuSTAR) · 94 (IRIS) · 95 (NICER) · 96 (TESS)