Deep Space One mission to end this week
Posted: Sun, Dec 16, 2001, 12:52 PM ET (1752 GMT)
NASA's Deep Space One (DS1) mission is scheduled to end on Tuesday, more than three years after launch and three months after a successful comet flyby. The spacecraft was launched in October 1998 on a one-year mission to test a suite of advanced technologies, including ion propulsion and artificial intelligence control systems. The spacecraft then entered an extended mission phase, which will officially conclude on Tuesday. DS1 encountered a number of problems during its mission, including initial problems with its ion drive and the failure of its star tracker, but engineers on the ground were able to solve those problems. DS1 made a successful flyby of the nucleus of comet Borrelly in September, returning images and other data that show that the comet's surface is among the darkest objects in the solar system. DS1 also flew by the asteroid Braille in 1999. Project officials had hoped to extend DS1's mission into next year to allow the spacecraft to fly by another asteroid, 1999 KK1, but could not secure the additional several million dollars needed for the extension from NASA.
NASA's Deep Space One (DS1) mission is scheduled to end on Tuesday, more than three years after launch and three months after a successful comet flyby. The spacecraft was launched in October 1998 on a one-year mission to test a suite of advanced technologies, including ion propulsion and artificial intelligence control systems. The spacecraft then entered an extended mission phase, which will officially conclude on Tuesday. DS1 encountered a number of problems during its mission, including initial problems with its ion drive and the failure of its star tracker, but engineers on the ground were able to solve those problems. DS1 made a successful flyby of the nucleus of comet Borrelly in September, returning images and other data that show that the comet's surface is among the darkest objects in the solar system. DS1 also flew by the asteroid Braille in 1999. Project officials had hoped to extend DS1's mission into next year to allow the spacecraft to fly by another asteroid, 1999 KK1, but could not secure the additional several million dollars needed for the extension from NASA.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Wednesday, August 26
Russia’s Starlink Rival “Rassvet” Is Falling—One Satellite Gone, Two More May Be Next
United24 Media — 7:13 am ET (1113 GMT) Zelenskyy Gives Musk State Honor as Ukraine Lobbies for Starlink
Bloomberg News — 7:12 am ET (1112 GMT) Genie Space Edge Processor Achieves Space Heritage with Successful U.S. Space Force Mission
PR Newswire — 7:11 am ET (1111 GMT) China and Russia are nipping at America’s heels in the new space race
Washington Post — 7:11 am ET (1111 GMT) 6,500 Earth Observation Satellites Will Be Launched by 2035 as Next Defense Frontier
Military.com — 7:11 am ET (1111 GMT) |
