NOAA-B
| Mission type | Weather |
|---|---|
| Operator | NOAA/NASA |
| COSPAR ID | 1980-043A |
| SATCAT № | 11819 |
| Mission duration | Launch failure |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft type | TIROS-N |
| Launch mass | 1,405 kilograms (3,097 lb) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | May 29, 1980 |
| Rocket | Atlas E/F Star-37S-ISS |
| Launch site | Vandenberg SLC-3W |
| End of mission | |
| Decay date | May 3, 1981 |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Low Earth (Sun-synchronous planned) |
| Perigee | 267 kilometers (166 mi) |
| Apogee | 1,377 kilometers (856 mi) |
| Inclination | 92.2 degrees |
| Period | 101.34 minutes |
| Epoch | June 28, 1980[1] |
NOAA-B[2] was a spacecraft in the TIROS-N series launched by NASA on May 29, 1980. Intended for a sun-synchronous orbit, the spacecraft entered a lower, elliptical orbit due to a launch vehicle malfunction resulting in a failed mission. Had the launch been successful it would have been designated NOAA-7.[3]
Science Objectives
- Day and night observation of global cloud cover.
- Observation of atmospheric water/temperature profile.
- Monitoring particle flux in the near-Earth environment.
Launch Failure
Following launch a fuel leak between the turbopump and gearbox caused the main engine to lose 20–25% of its thrust.[4][5] This caused the guidance system of the Atlas launch vehicle to increase the length of the first stage burn to compensate.[4]
Due to requirements specific to TIROS missions, there was no interface between the satellite and the launch vehicle guidance systems.[4] This resulted in the satellite attempting to separate from the launch vehicle at approximately 370 seconds after launch. The separation failed due to recontact between the Atlas - which was still under thrust - and the satellite, which only separated when the solid-fuel rocket motor intended to place NOAA-B into a circular 830 km (450 nmi) sun-synchronous orbit fired.[4]
Because the satellite had been unable to perform the pitch-down maneuver necessary to reach its intended orbit the spacecraft ended up in a highly elliptical orbit that was unsuitable for the intended mission.[3][6] Following unsuccessful attempts to correct the orbit using the satellite's attitude control thrusters, NASA pronounced the mission a failure.[3][7][8]
Unlike the earlier Nimbus 1, which was also launched into an unplanned elliptical orbit following a launch vehicle malfunction, no attempt appears to have been made to operate the spacecraft instrumentation during its remaining lifetime in orbit.[9]
References
- Notes
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External links
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TIROS satellites
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|---|---|---|
| TIROS |
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| TOS | ||
| ITOS | ||
| TIROS-N | ||
| Adv. TIROS-N | ||
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ NSSCD - NOAA-B - Trajectory Details, 2012
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Spokane Daily Chronicle, May 30, 1980. p. 8
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Eleazer, 2012
- ↑ Merced Sun-Star, May 30, 1980. p. 27
- ↑ The Spokesman-Review, May 30, 1980. p. 14
- ↑ Bell, 1980
- ↑ Wade, 2012.
- ↑ NSSCD - NOAA-B - Spacecraft Description, 2012
