Japan launches astronomy satellite
Posted: Wed, Feb 22, 2006, 7:43 AM ET (1243 GMT)
An M-5 rocket successfully launched a Japanese astronomy satellite early Wednesday, the second launch in less than a week for the Japanese space agency. The M-5 rocket lifted off from the Uchinoura Space Center at 4:28 pm EST Tuesday (2128 GMT Tuesday, 6:28 am JST Wednesday) and deployed the 950-kilogram Astro-F satellite about eight and a half minutes later. The spacecraft, renamed Akari ("light") after launch, is operating well, although JAXA announced in a statement that a problem with the spacecraft's sun sensor had prevented the spacecraft from getting into the proper attitude; the spacecraft is instead using an Earth sensor and gyroscopes to get into the proper orientation. Akari is an infrared astronomy satellite, carrying a 70-cm telescope and two instruments. The launch is the third this year for JAXA, more than in all of 2005, and the second in less than a week.
An M-5 rocket successfully launched a Japanese astronomy satellite early Wednesday, the second launch in less than a week for the Japanese space agency. The M-5 rocket lifted off from the Uchinoura Space Center at 4:28 pm EST Tuesday (2128 GMT Tuesday, 6:28 am JST Wednesday) and deployed the 950-kilogram Astro-F satellite about eight and a half minutes later. The spacecraft, renamed Akari ("light") after launch, is operating well, although JAXA announced in a statement that a problem with the spacecraft's sun sensor had prevented the spacecraft from getting into the proper attitude; the spacecraft is instead using an Earth sensor and gyroscopes to get into the proper orientation. Akari is an infrared astronomy satellite, carrying a 70-cm telescope and two instruments. The launch is the third this year for JAXA, more than in all of 2005, and the second in less than a week.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Saturday, October 3
ETH Space Researcher Thomas Zurbuchen Joins Blue Origin
Blue News — 12:21 am ET (0421 GMT) Swiss space researcher Thomas Zurbuchen to join Blue Origin
Swissinfo — 12:21 am ET (0421 GMT) With Elon Musk’s Return to Washington, Possible Conflicts of Interest Resurface
New York Times — 12:19 am ET (0419 GMT) World Space Week 2026: How Rocket Revolution is reshaping exploration
The Federal (India) — 12:17 am ET (0417 GMT) Could we ever create artificial gravity on a spaceship?
LiveScience — 12:16 am ET (0416 GMT) |
