Jason-3

Jason-3

Artist's impression of the Jason-3 satellite
Names Joint Altimetry Satellite Oceanography Network - 3
Mission type Earth observation
Operator NASA, NOAA, CNES, EUMETSAT
COSPAR ID 2016-002A
SATCAT № 41240
Website http://www.nesdis.noaa.gov/jason-3/
Mission duration Planned: 5 years
Elapsed: 3 months and 11 days
Spacecraft properties
Bus Proteus
Manufacturer Thales Alenia Space
Launch mass 553 kg (1,219 lb)[1]
Dry mass 525 kg (1,157 lb)[1]
Power 550 watts[1]
Start of mission
Launch date January 17, 2016, 18:42:18 (2016-01-17UTC18:42:18) UTC[2]
Rocket Falcon 9 v1.1
Launch site Vandenberg SLC-4E
Contractor SpaceX
Orbital parameters
Reference system Geocentric
Regime Low Earth
Semi-major axis 7,714.4 km (4,793.5 mi)
Eccentricity 0.000095
Perigee 1,336 km (830 mi)
Apogee 1,336 km (830 mi)
Inclination 66.04°
Period 112.43 minutes
Repeat interval 9.9156 days
Epoch Planned[3]
Ocean Surface Topography
← OSTM/Jason-2 Jason-CS →

Jason-3 is an international Earth observation satellite mission that continues the sea surface height measurements begun in 1992 by the joint NASA/CNES TOPEX/Poseidon mission, followed by the NASA/CNES Jason-1 mission launched in 2001 and Jason-2 mission in 2008.[4]

History

Jason-3 was originally planned for launch on July 22, 2015. However, this date was pushed back to August 19 following the discovery of contamination in one of the satellite's thrusters, requiring the thruster to be replaced and further inspected.[5][6] The launch was further delayed following the failure of a Falcon 9 rocket on the SpaceX CRS-7 mission. The satellite was launched on January 17, 2016, in Falcon 9 Flight 21, aboard the final Falcon 9 v1.1 rocket.

Science objectives

The science objectives for Jason-3 are:

Spacecraft

The satellite is built around a Proteus satellite bus, built by Thales Alenia Space under contract from CNES. A pair of deployable, tracking solar arrays supply a total of 580 watts of power. Four hydrazine monopropellant thrusters are used for orbital maneuvering. Attitude control is provided by reaction wheels, with magnetorquers used to periodically despin the wheels.[7] Jason-3 weighs about 553 kg (1,219 lb) at launch, with a dry mass of 525 kg (1,157 lb).[1]

Instruments

Jason-3 carries five main instruments. The primary instrument is the Poseidon-3B Altimeter, which is derived from the Poseidon-3 carried on Jason-2. The other main instruments are Doppler Orbitography and Radiopositioning Integrated by Satellite (DORIS), Advanced Microwave Radiometer-2 (AMR-2), Global Positioning System Payload (GPSP), and Laser Retroreflector Array (LRA). Two additional "passenger instruments" are carried as part of the Joint Radiation Experiment. These are CARMEN-3 (Characterization and Modeling of Environment), which measures charged particle flux, and Light Particle Telescope (LPT), which measures radiation and charged particles.[8]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Satellite: JASON-3". World Meteorological Organization. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Jason-3 Ocean-Monitoring Satellite healthy after smooth ride atop Falcon 9 Rocket". Spaceflight 101. January 17, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Jason-3 Orbit". CNES. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  4. ↑ "What is Jason-3?". NOAA.
  5. ↑ Jason Rhian. "Thruster contamination on NOAA’s Jason-3 satellite forces delay". Spaceflight Insider.
  6. ↑ Stephen Clark (June 18, 2015). "Jason 3 satellite shipped to Vandenberg for SpaceX launch". Spaceflight Now.
  7. ↑ "Jason-3 Spacecraft & Instruments". Spaceflight 101. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Spacecraft". NOAA.

External links

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