Aura (satellite)

Last updated
Aura
Aura spacecraft model.png
Artist's rendering of the Aura satellite
NamesEOS CH-1
Mission typeEarth Observation
Operator NASA
COSPAR ID 2004-026A OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
SATCAT no. 28376
Website aura.gsfc.nasa.gov
Mission duration20 years, 14 days (elapsed)
Spacecraft properties
Bus T330 (AB-1200)
Manufacturer Northrop Grumman
Launch mass2,970 kilograms (6,550 lb)
Dimensions4.70 m x 17.37 m x 6.91 m
Power4.6 kW
Start of mission
Launch dateJuly 15, 2004, 10:01:51 (2004-07-15UTC10:01:51Z) UTC
Rocket Delta II 7920-10L
D-306
Launch site Vandenberg SLC-2W
End of mission
Last contact2036 (2037) (planned)
Decay date2048 (planned)
Orbital parameters
Reference system Geocentric
Regime Sun-synchronous
Semi-major axis 7,080.7 kilometers (4,399.7 mi)
Eccentricity 0.0001111 [1]
Perigee altitude 708 kilometers (440 mi) [1]
Apogee altitude 710 kilometers (440 mi) [1]
Inclination 98.22 degrees [1]
Period 98.83 minutes [1]
RAAN 96.8126 degrees
Argument of perigee 89.5089 degrees
Mean anomaly 270.6277 degrees
Mean motion 14.57112850
Epoch 25 January 2015, 03:15:27 UTC [1]
Large Strategic Science Missions
Earth Science Division
  ICESat
Suomi NPP  
 
  SORCE
CloudSat  
Aura instruments. Aura spacecraft.png
Aura instruments.

Aura (EOS CH-1) is a multi-national NASA scientific research satellite in orbit around the Earth, studying the Earth's ozone layer, air quality and climate. [2] It is the third major component of the Earth Observing System (EOS) following on Terra (launched 1999) and Aqua (launched 2002). Aura follows on from the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS). Aura is a joint mission between NASA, the Netherlands, Finland, and the U.K. [3] The Aura spacecraft is healthy and is expected to operate until at least 2023, likely beyond. [4]

Contents

The name "Aura" comes from the Latin word for air. The satellite was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base on July 15, 2004, aboard a Delta II 7920-10L rocket.

The Aura spacecraft has a mass of about 1,765 kg (3,891 lb). The body is 6.9 m (23 ft) long with the extended single solar panel about 15 m (49 ft) long.

Aura flies in a Sun-synchronous orbit, in formation with three other satellites, collectively known as the "A Train"; it is last in the formation. The other satellites in the formation are:

All satellites have an equatorial crossing time at about 1:30 in the afternoon, thus the name 'A (Afternoon) Train'.

Mission

As of 2015, there had been 1589 Aura-related journal articles. The scientific findings of these studies address key NASA research objectives related to stratospheric composition, air quality, and climate change. [4]

Aura has suffered some minor, non-mission ending anomalies.

On January 12, 2005, a solar array connector partially "unzipped" losing temperature telemetry and power from part of the solar array. On March 12, 2010, Aura lost power from one-half of one of the 11 solar panels and this was attributed to a Micrometeoroid Orbital Debris (MMOD) strike. These events, and 9 other anomalies in the array regulation electronics (ARE), have resulted in an estimated loss of 33 out of 132 solar strings. [5] Nonetheless, the mission is estimated to have ample power capabilities to supply the mission until fuel runs out. [6] [7] [8]

A Formatter Multiplexer Unit (FMU) / Solid State Recorder (SSR) anomaly was first detected in December 2007. New symptoms were detected in January 2017 and starting on March 21, 2017, Aura no longer recorded housekeeping data to partition 31. [6]

In December 2016, reaction wheel #3 spun down. It was recovered 10 days later. [6]

On January 31, 2018, the TES instrument was decommissioned due to degrading operations. A mechanical arm on the instrument began stalling intermittently in 2010, affecting TES's ability to collect data continuously. Despite the adaptations of TES operators, the degradation got worse with time and in 2017 the instrument lost operations for approximately half the year. It will continue to receive enough power to keep it from getting too cold which could affect the two remaining functioning instruments. [9]

As of 2020, the expected constellation exit date is December 2023. An extended mission, below the A-train could push decommissioning back to late 2025 or as far as 2036. Predicted re-entry would be 2048. [7] [5]

Instruments

Aura carries four instruments for studies of atmospheric chemistry:

Animation of Aura's orbit around Earth. Earth is not shown Animation of Aura orbit around Earth.gif
Animation of Aura's orbit around Earth. Earth is not shown

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System</span> NASA satellite climate data instruments

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite</span> NASA-operated orbital observatory (1991-2011)

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atmospheric chemistry observational databases</span> Aspect of atmospheric sciences

Over the last two centuries many environmental chemical observations have been made from a variety of ground-based, airborne, and orbital platforms and deposited in databases. Many of these databases are publicly available. All of the instruments mentioned in this article give online public access to their data. These observations are critical in developing our understanding of the Earth's atmosphere and issues such as climate change, ozone depletion and air quality. Some of the external links provide repositories of many of these datasets in one place. For example, the Cambridge Atmospheric Chemical Database, is a large database in a uniform ASCII format. Each observation is augmented with the meteorological conditions such as the temperature, potential temperature, geopotential height, and equivalent PV latitude.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ozone monitoring instrument</span>

The ozone monitoring instrument (OMI) is a nadir-viewing visual and ultraviolet spectrometer aboard the NASA Aura spacecraft. Aura flies in formation about 15 minutes behind Aqua, both of which orbit the Earth in a polar Sun-synchronous pattern. Aura was launched on July 15, 2004, and OMI has collected data since August 9, 2004. OMI can distinguish between aerosol types, such as smoke, dust, and sulfates, and can measure cloud pressure and coverage, which provide data to derive tropospheric ozone. OMI follows in the heritage of TOMS, SBUV, GOME, SCIAMACHY, and GOMOS. OMI measurements cover a spectral region of 264–504 nm (nanometers) with a spectral resolution between 0.42 nm and 0.63 nm and a nominal ground footprint of 13 × 24 km2 at nadir. The Aura satellite orbits at an altitude of 705 km in a sun-synchronous polar orbit with an exact 16-day repeat cycle and with a local equator crossing time of 13. 45 on the ascending node. The orbital inclination is 98.1 degrees, providing latitudinal coverage from 82° N to 82° S. It is a wide-field-imaging spectrometer with a 114° across-track viewing angle range that provides a 2600 km wide swath, enabling measurements with a daily global coverage. OMI is continuing the TOMS record for total ozone and other atmospheric parameters related to ozone chemistry and climate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atmospheric infrared sounder</span> Science instrument on NASAs Aqua satellite

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">NOAA-21</span> NASA/NOAA weather satellite (2022–Present)

NOAA-21, designated JPSS-2 prior to launch, is the second of the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)'s latest generation of U.S. polar-orbiting, non-geosynchronous, environmental satellites called the Joint Polar Satellite System. NOAA-21 was launched on 10 November 2022 and joined NOAA-20 and Suomi NPP in the same orbit. Circling the Earth from pole-to-pole, it will cross the equator about 14 times daily, providing full global coverage twice a day. It was launched with LOFTID.

Anne Ritger Douglass is atmospheric physicist known for her research on chlorinated compounds and the ozone layer.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "AURA Satellite details 2004-026A NORAD 28376". N2YO. 25 January 2015. Retrieved 25 January 2015.
  2. Schoeberl, M.R.; Douglass, A.R.; Hilsenrath, E.; Bhartia, P.K.; Beer, R.; Waters, J.W.; Gunson, M.R.; Froidevaux, L.; Gille, J.C.; Barnett, J.J.; Levelt, P.F. (2006). "Overview of the EOS aura mission". IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing. 44 (5): 1066–1074. Bibcode:2006ITGRS..44.1066S. CiteSeerX   10.1.1.454.2029 . doi:10.1109/TGRS.2005.861950. ISSN   0196-2892. S2CID   2153656.
  3. "Earth Science Reference Handbook" (PDF). Retrieved 7 September 2018.
  4. 1 2 3 Liu, Guosheng (22 June 2015). NASA Earth Science Senior Review 2015 (PDF) (Report). Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 October 2020. Retrieved 17 October 2017.
  5. 1 2 Fischer, Dominic (29 September 2020). "Mission Status for Earth Science Constellation MOWG Meeting EOS Aura" (PDF). Retrieved 15 July 2021.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Fisher, Dominic (13 June 2017). "Mission Status at Aura Science Team MOWG Meeting" (PDF). Archived from the original on 13 April 2022. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
  7. 1 2 Fisher, Dominic (6 December 2017). "Mission Status for Earth Science Constellation MOWG Meeting at KSC: EOS Aura" (PDF). Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  8. Fischer, Dominic (12 June 2018). "Mission Status for Earth Science Constellation MOWG Meeting @ Sioux Falls SD EOS Aura" (pdf). Archived from the original on 13 April 2022. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
  9. Buis, Alan (13 February 2018). "Farewell to a Pioneering Pollution Sensor" . Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  10. Schoeberl, M (2011). Aura Senior Review (PDF) (Report). Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 January 2022. Retrieved 17 October 2017.
  11. Livesey, Nathaniel J. "MLS Version 3.3 Level 2 data quality and description document" (PDF). Retrieved 13 December 2017.
  12. "Background information about the Row Anomaly in OMI" . Retrieved 13 December 2017.
  13. Vandemark, Douglas. "NASA Earth Science Senior Review Subcommittee Report - 2017" (PDF). Retrieved 14 December 2017.
  14. Fischer, Dominic. "Mission Status for Earth Science Constellation MOWG Meeting @ Sioux Falls, SD June 2018" (PDF). Retrieved 15 July 2021.