Name of Satellite, Alternate Names |
COSMIC-A (Formosat-3A, Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere and Climate) |
Country of Operator/Owner |
Taiwan/USA |
Operator/Owner |
National Space Program Office (NSPO)/University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) Boulder, CO |
Users |
Government/Civil |
Purpose |
Remote Sensing |
Class of Orbit |
LEO |
Type of Orbit |
Sun-Synchronous |
Longitude of GEO (degrees) |
0 |
Perigee (km) |
764 |
Apogee (km) |
836 |
Eccentricity |
0.00502092050209205 |
Inclination (degrees) |
72 |
Period (minutes) |
100.9 |
Launch Mass (kg.) |
70 |
Dry Mass (kg.) |
|
Power (watts) |
46 |
Date of Launch |
15-04-2006 |
Expected Lifetime |
2 yrs. |
Contractor |
Orbital Sciences Corp. |
Country of Contractor |
USA |
Launch Site |
Vandenberg AFB |
Launch Vehicle |
Minotaur |
COSPAR Number |
2006-011A |
NORAD Number |
29047 |
Comments |
“. . . Provide atmospheric data daily in real time over thousands of points on Earth for both research and operational weather forecasting by measuring the bending of radio signals from the U.S. Global Positioning System (GPS) as the signals pass through Earth´s atmosphere.” |