Megha-Tropiques

Spacecraft n°:

Indian spacecraft n°: 62

Launch data: Designation  37838 / 11058A Launch date  12 Oct 2011 - 05:31 UT Launch site  Sriharikota, FLP Launch vehicle  PSLV-C18 Mission  Government: Earth Observation (Remote sensing) LEO Earth orbit: Perigee / Apogee  867 x 867 km Eccentricity  0,00E+00 Inclination  20.0 deg Period  102.29 min

Spacecraft data: Prime manufacturer  Alcatel Space, ISRO Platform  IRS Bus Operator  ISRO, CNES Mass at launch  1000 kg Dry Mass   kg Basic shape   Dimension (m)   Equipment   Solar array  2 deployable solar arrays Stabilization   Propulsion   DC power  1325 W (EOL) Design lifetime  5 yrs - still active

Solar Depolyment Test Of Megha-Tropiques - Credit: ISRO

Description:

• The french-indian Megha-Tropiques satellite is devoted to the atmospheric research. The data collected by the satellite will allow to improve our knowledge on the water cycle contribution to the climate dynamic in the tropical atmosphere and our understanding of the processes linked to the tropical convection.
• MEGHA-TROPIQUES is a climate research mission to track tropical cyclones, monsoons and storm systems for at least three years. Embarking on an international research mission, Megha-Tropiques has four instruments designed to probe the structure of the atmosphere, measure temperature and water vapor, and study the Earth's radiation budget. India built the spacecraft, provided the launch and contributed to two instruments. France supplied the satellite's water vapor profiling sensor and the radiation detector. The satellite orbits about 538 miles (866 km) above Earth, crisscrossing the equator to cover an area stretching between 20 degrees north and south latitude.
• The data collected by the satellite will allow improvement in knowledge on the water cycle contribution to the climate dynamic in the tropical atmosphere and our understanding of the processes linked to the tropical convection.

Mission details:

• India launched PSLV-C18, a PSLV-CA core-alone variant, from Sriharikota on Oct 12. The main payload of PSLV-C18 is the Megha-Tropiques satellite, a joint Indian-French remote sensing satellite with a mass of around 1000 kg and based on the IRS bus. It carries the MADRAS microwave imager, the Saphir water vapor profile instrument, and the ScaRaB radiation budget sanner.
• Also carried were three small satellites: SRMSAT, from SRM University in Chennai, is a 10 kg satellite for greenhouse gas monitoring. Jugnu, from the Indian Inst. of Technology in Kanpur is a 3U cubesat-class technology satellite. VesselSat is a 29 kg small satellite built by OHB LuxSpace of Luxembourg to provide AIS (ship tracking) services for Orbcomm.
• The five objects are in orbits with an apogee of 867 km and perigees ranging from 780 to 850 km; the low perigee object is probably the rocket stage.

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