Ibuki

Launch data: Designation  33492 / 09002A Launch date  23 Jan 2009 - 03:54 UT Launch site  Tanegashima, YLP-1 Launch vehicle  H-2A-202 (#15) Mission  Civil: Earth observation, Remote sensing Sun-synchronous Earth orbit on Jan 23.28: Perigee / Apogee  668 x 673 km Eccentricity  1,42E-04 Inclination  98.03 deg Period  98.15 min

Spacecraft data: Prime contractor  Mitsubishi Electric / Kamikura Platform   Operator  JAXA Mass at launch  1750 kg Dry Mass   kg Basic shape  box-shaped Dimension (m)   Solar array  2 vanes of solar panels, deployed in orbit Stabilization   DC power  3800 W Design lifetime  5 yrs - still active

Credit: JAXA

Mission details:

• Japan's H2A No. 15 rocket took off from Tanegashima on Jan 23 and placed the GOSAT (Greenhouse Gas Observing Satellite) in a 669 x 672 km x 98.0 deg sun-synchronous orbit. GOSAT has been given the name 'Ibuki' ('breath'); it carries the TANSO-FTS IR spectrometer and the TANSO-CAI cloud and aerosol imager. GOSAT was developed by the Japanese space agency JAXA and built by Mitsubishi Electric/Kamakura.
• The 1750 kg Ibuki was accompanied by a cluster of small satellites released from the H2A second stage.
• Observe the concentration and distribution of greenhouse gases across most of the Earth's surface.