Ulysses mission ends
Posted: Tue, Jul 7, 2009, 6:16 AM ET (1016 GMT)
Spacecraft controllers shut down the ESA/NASA Ulysses spacecraft last week, ending a nearly 18-year mission to study the Sun. The spacecraft, launched by the space shuttle in October 1990, provided scientists with the first observations of the polar regions of the Sun and lasted far longer than originally planned. Project officials had expected the mission to end a year earlier as the power output of the spacecraft's RTG dropped to the point where heaters would no longer be able to keep the spacecraft's fuel lines from freezing. However, occasional use of the spacecraft's thrusters kept the fuel lines open, allowing scientists to eke out an additional year's worth of data. Project officials decided to shut down the spacecraft now as power levels dropped further and time on ground stations became more difficult to obtain.
Spacecraft controllers shut down the ESA/NASA Ulysses spacecraft last week, ending a nearly 18-year mission to study the Sun. The spacecraft, launched by the space shuttle in October 1990, provided scientists with the first observations of the polar regions of the Sun and lasted far longer than originally planned. Project officials had expected the mission to end a year earlier as the power output of the spacecraft's RTG dropped to the point where heaters would no longer be able to keep the spacecraft's fuel lines from freezing. However, occasional use of the spacecraft's thrusters kept the fuel lines open, allowing scientists to eke out an additional year's worth of data. Project officials decided to shut down the spacecraft now as power levels dropped further and time on ground stations became more difficult to obtain.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Monday, September 14
Avio launches pair of climate monitoring European spacecraft to study plants, oceans and atmospheric changes
Spaceflight Now — 12:00 am ET (0400 GMT) Human Spaceflight Key Agenda Item For ESA Intermediate Ministerial
Aviation Week — 11:58 pm ET (0358 GMT) FLEX and Sentinel-3C launched
ESA — 11:57 pm ET (0357 GMT) Starlink broadband pilot targets Lincolnshire's rural 'not spots'
BBC — 11:56 pm ET (0356 GMT) US military has ‘on-orbit’ space weapons, Air Force Secretary reveals
Defense One — 11:55 pm ET (0355 GMT) |
