from the all-things-come-to-those-who-wait dept.
NASA's Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) instrument, which will study how solar activity affects Earth's upper atmosphere, was launched aboard an Ariane 5 rocket and is attached to a commercial satellite. However, GOLD was briefly feared lost along with the two satellites that were launched, until communications were established and it was found that the satellites had been deployed in lower-than-expected orbits:
A brief tracking failure led to fears that the satellite meant to host NASA's new mission to better understand space weather had been lost, according to SpaceFlightNow. Though the European Ariane 5 rocket carrying the satellite lifted off uneventfully, none of the customers with spacecraft on the rocket could reach their probes for some time.
The satellites are in orbit now and have communicated with their control centers, Arianespace announced, but it looks like the rocket deployed the satellites into less than ideal orbits. "The mission experienced some challenges during the launch stages which resulted in the Al Yah 3 satellite being inserted into an orbit that differed from the flight plan," Yahsat, a satellite communications company whose Al Yah 3 vehicle was on the rocket, said in a statement. "However, the satellite is healthy and operating nominally."
The other customer, Luxembourg-based operator SES, also confirmed that its satellite, SES-14, went into a lower orbit than planned but is operating just fine. SES-14 is hosting an instrument called GOLD, which is the first NASA mission to consist of an instrument living on a commercial company's satellite. Both SES and Yahsat say they will figure out a way for the satellites to course-correct in order to get to their originally planned orbits and do their jobs.
An Ariane 5 rocket is scheduled to launch the James Webb Space Telescope in 2019.
Also at the University of Colorado Boulder and Newsweek.
Previously: NASA's GOLD Mission to Study the Upper Atmosphere Using a Commercial Satellite
Related Stories
On January 25, Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) will become NASA's first science instrument to launch aboard a geostationary commercial satellite:
The Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) mission is an instrument launching on a commercial satellite to inspect from geostationary orbit the dynamic intermingling of space and Earth's uppermost atmosphere. GOLD will seek to understand what drives change in this region where terrestrial weather in the lower atmosphere interacts with the tumult of solar activity from above and Earth's magnetic field. Resulting data will improve forecasting models of space weather events that can impact life on Earth, as well as satellites and astronauts in space.
NASA will hold a press conference about the mission at 1 PM EST on Thursday.
The mission will study the thermosphere and ionosphere using a far-ultraviolet imaging spectrograph. Richard Eastes from the Florida Space Institute at the University of Central Florida leads the mission.
The SES-14 commercial payload will replace NSS-806, a communications satellite covering Latin America, the Iberian peninsula, Canary Islands, Western Europe and much of Eastern Europe.
On Wednesday night, an Ariane 5 booster took off from Kourou, a launch site in French Guiana operated by a European rocket company. The launch proceeded normally until shortly before nine minutes and 26 seconds into the flight, when ground tracking stations lost contact with the rocket. It was feared that the launch vehicle and its two satellites were lost.
But later Wednesday night, and again on Thursday, both of the satellite operators, SES and Eutelsat, separately confirmed that they were in contact with their respective spacecraft, the SES-14 satellite and the Al Yah 3 satellite. They were not in their proper geostationary orbits, but that could be fixed, the satellite companies said.
Just how far off those orbits became clear publicly later on Thursday, when data about them started appearing in satellite trackers. According to one orbital expert, Jonathan McDowell, each of the satellites had reached near the 45,000km heights where they need to be, but the inclinations were way off.
[...] "I characterize this as a major anomaly, but I score it a partial success for launch vehicle statistics," McDowell said. "The orbit is usable but will require several years worth of satellite station-keeping propellant to get the payloads to the right final orbit." This is obviously preferable to losing the satellites entirely.
Source: ArsTechnica
See also:
http://spacenews.com/breaking-ariane-5-loses-contact-with-ground-control-after-upper-stage-ignition/
http://spacenews.com/satellites-placed-into-incorrect-orbits-by-ariane-5-can-be-recovered-owners-say/
Previously: NASA's GOLD Makes It Into Orbit After Fears It Was Lost
(Score: 3, Interesting) by bob_super on Saturday January 27 2018, @01:44AM (12 children)
Ars mentioned that the Sats were at 20 degrees instead of about 3. So not "lower" but requiring adjustment.
> Both SES and Yahsat say they will figure out a way for the satellites to course-correct in order to get to their originally planned orbits and do their jobs.
The SES post linked in TFS says it will take them 4 weeks to correct, so the way is figured out. It will cost station-keeping fuel (potentially years-worth, but SES implies they had that much margin).
With regards to launching the much-delayed and uninsurable $10,000,000,000.00 James Webb, people will cross their fingers really hard and chant prayers to Ariane 5 for being the most reliable way to get it off the ground.
Parallel with the Mars Skycrane thing: it's a lot more likely to be perfect, yet people will be sweating buckets.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 27 2018, @02:58AM (10 children)
This is what happens when you use inferior European equipment. They are a primitive feudal society. The smart ones escaped to North America a long time ago. If you want quality, you buy American. Just another simple fact of life.
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Saturday January 27 2018, @03:47AM (9 children)
While the rich ones stayed behind, fat and happy. The poor were smart because they had to be [economist.com]. Disadvantaged as they were, if they weren't smart, they died.
The rich haven't had any evolutionary pressure to get smarter, ever. And, yet, we have effectively given them control of the world. This will not end well.
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 2) by fishybell on Saturday January 27 2018, @04:10AM
End?
Long after we're all gone I'm sure.
(Score: 2) by FatPhil on Saturday January 27 2018, @04:14AM (7 children)
I'm not disagreeing with you, your 2nd paragraph is spot on.
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Saturday January 27 2018, @04:29AM (2 children)
Evolutionarily speaking, the whole world, America included, has been on greased skids to stupidity for 60+ years now.
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 2) by frojack on Saturday January 27 2018, @09:30PM (1 child)
And the 60+ years of your Father's generation, and his father's and his father's....
There is nothing new or insightful about grousing about the stupidity of the upcoming generation. Its been done every generation since the Pleistocene.
Yet some how your grandfather's generation managed to build steam trains, and your's or your father's built rocket ships.
The only people ride horses any more are pubescent girls.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Saturday January 27 2018, @10:29PM
It takes less and less intelligence to breed as time goes on, the article referenced above noted how fecundity was correlated with intelligence as recently as the 1800s. Since WWII that correlation has swung around to the negative.
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 2) by Hartree on Sunday January 28 2018, @04:42AM (3 children)
"Which country has the rich but fucking stupid leader?"
Several of them, actually.
(Score: 2) by FatPhil on Sunday January 28 2018, @12:36PM (2 children)
But yes, with a bell-curve so centred, there will be plenty more, ahem, outliars.
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 2) by isostatic on Monday January 29 2018, @06:54PM (1 child)
I wouldn't put Theresa May as rich. Nor Brown, Major or Thatcher.
Blair and Cameron were from rich families, but not excessively rich.
(Score: 2) by FatPhil on Monday January 29 2018, @08:47PM
> Blair and Cameron were cunts
IFYPFY.
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 2) by isostatic on Monday January 29 2018, @06:43PM
launching the much-delayed and uninsurable
I'm happy to insure it, for the low low price of $9,999,999,000
If it blows up I'm out $1,000
If it doesn't I'm a billionaire
Beats a weekend in Vegas!
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 27 2018, @04:02AM
Watch it, see that the so-called shadow of Earth goes from black to red/orange/brown, all at once over the entire 'shadowed' area.
Realize the Earth is Flat. No joke, Soylent Tards. Watch it! What have you to lose, except your entire everything?