HJ-1C

Spacecraft nº:

Chinese spacecraft nº: 194

Launch data: Designation  38997 / 12064A Launch date  18 Nov 2012 - 22:53 UT Launch site  Taiyuan, LC-9 Launch vehicle  CZ-2C Mission  Government: Earth observation, Remote sensing Sun-synchronous LEO Earth orbit: Perigee / Apogee  489 x 503 km Eccentricity  1,02E-03 Inclination  97.35 deg Period  94.53 min

Spacecraft data:

Description:

• HJ 1C (Huan Jing = Environment) is a small chinese radar Earth observation satellite. The satellite constellation is composed of a number of small satellites, the ground system, and the application system. It will provide all-weather (3 to 100m meter) imagery. The Huan Jing constellation consists of two small optical satellites, the HJ-1A and the HJ-1B, and one radar satellite, the HJ-1C.
• It joins two Huanjing satellites with optical imagers launched in 2008. The disaster-monitoring fleet provides data on floods, wildfires, drought, typhoons and landslides. Imagery from the Huanjing satellites are shared with other countries as part of an international framework for disaster response. Huanjing means environment in English. HY 1C uses a S-band SAR for imaging.
• Huanjing-1C is based on the CAST-968 Satellite Bus and carries a 6 by 2.8-meter SAR radar antenna. It will operate from a Sun-Synchronous Orbit at an altitude of about 500 Kilometers and an inclination of 97.3 degrees. The S-Band SAR will provide imagery of a 100-Kilometer ground swath with a spatial resolution of approximately 20 meters in its Scan Mode while operating the payload in Strip Mode will provide imagery of a 40-Kilometer swath with a resolution of 6 meters. The satellite has a liftoff mass of 890kg. It is expected to operate for at least three years.

Mission details:

• Together with the 890 kg HJ-1C satellite, the CZ-2C rocket deployed two small payloads: 'xin jishu yanzheng weixing' (New technology demonstration satellite), Xinyan-1 for short, and 'fengniao shiyan zaihe' (Hummingbird experimental payload), Fengniao-1 or FN-1 for short.
  FN-1 consists of the 130 kg FN-1A and the 30 kg FN-1B, which will later separate for formation flying experiments.