Artist’s rendition of a satellite – paulfleet/123RF Stock Photo
NASA’s Landsat-9 was successfully launched on the 27th September, but it was not the only satellite onboard the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, as two cubesats also hitched a ride:
- Cusp Plasma Imaging Detector (CuPID) is an Earth Observation (EO) 6U cubesat is fitted with a wide field-of-view soft X-ray telescope detecting lower-energy (soft) X-rays, which are generated by a process known as magnetic reconnection, which occurs when two magnetic fields, such as that of Earth and the Sun, encounter each other. This interaction can create aurora displays, but can also come through the Earth’s magnetic shield to knock out elements such as power grids. CuPID will have a highly inclined low earth orbit where it will take measurements to try and better understand how magnetic reconnection operates.
- Colorado Ultraviolet Transit Experiment (CUTE) is not an EO satellite as its focus is out into space to study the atmospheric properties of planets orbiting other stars and to find exoplanets “transiting,” or passing across their parent stars. By measuring ultraviolet light from each star when a small part of the star is blocked from observation from Earth’s orbit, it is indicating that something is passing across the star and CUTE will measure such changes over time.
However, not all launches were so successful on the 27th September. China attempted to launch two EO satellites on the same day, Shiyan-10 and Jilin-1 Gaofen 02D. The following day  the Chinese state media released a statement that indicated that although the launch seemed to have initially gone well, and indications are Shiyan-10 separated from the rocket, during the flight the operating conditions of Shiyan-10 became abnormal and the satellite was lost. It is not known what caused the loss, and the Chinese indicate that data is being analysed and investigated. The Jilin-1 Gaofen 02D satellite was successfully delivered into orbit by the Kuaizhou-1A rocket – although this rocket also failed to launch Jilin-1 Gaofen 02C into orbit twelve months earlier.
Shiyan-10 was the latest in a series of experimental satellites launched by China, and although the purpose are not fully known most are believed to be EO satellites. Whereas, Jilin-1 Gaofen 02D is the latest high-resolution optical EO satellite forming part of a planned 138 strong constellation. To date, the constellations has 31 satellites in it, although the Chang Guang Satellite Technology Company which operates the satellites had planned to have 60 satellites in orbit by the end of 2021 with the remaining number following in the coming years. Given we are already in October, it is unlikely that the end of 2021 target will be fully met.
Finally, Sentinel-1A has been operational for seven years, which was its expected mission life. The satellite is still working effectively and is expected to continue to supply radar data, alongside Sentinel-1B, for many years ahead. Satellites exceeding mission life expectancy is a common thing, for example, we highlighted a couple of weeks ago that now Landsat-9 has been launched, Landsat-7 will end its 22 year mission in the near future – exceeding its five year expected mission life by a massive 17 years!
A report a couple of years ago, the 2019 Satellite Lifetime Study, which looked at Earth-orbiting satellites with a mass greater than 100 kg and design life greater than 1 month, found that approximately 87% of U.S. military and civil satellites and approximately 75% of commercial satellites met or exceeded their expected mission life. With the recent emphasis on cubesat launches a lot of mission lives are measured only in months, whereas for some of the larger satellites, like Landsat-9, the documented expected mission life of only 5 years, it is hoped to be much longer as the satellite actually has fuel for an expected 15 year mission.
All of this happened in just one week! Just shows a lot is going on in the EO industry!
