TIROS-3

TIROS-3
	TIROS-3 satellite
Mission type	Weather satellite
Operator	NASA
Harvard designation	1961 Ro 1
COSPAR ID	1961-017A
SATCAT no.	162
Mission duration	6 months
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type	TIROS
Manufacturer	RCA Astro / GSFC
Launch mass	129.3 kilograms (285 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date	July 12, 1961, 10:19 UTC
Rocket	Thor DM-19 Delta
Launch site	Cape Canaveral LC-17A
End of mission
Last contact	February 28, 1962
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Low Earth
Eccentricity	0.00489
Perigee altitude	742 kilometers (461 mi)
Apogee altitude	812 kilometers (505 mi)
Inclination	47.9°
Period	100.41 minutes
Epoch	July 12, 1961
Instruments
	Low Resolution Omnidirectional Radiometer; Widefield Radiometer; Scanning Radiometer; Television Camera System
	TIROS ← TIROS-2 TIROS-4 →

Last updated December 06, 2024

TIROS-3 (or TIROS-C) was a spin-stabilized meteorological satellite. It was the third in a series of Television Infrared Observation Satellites.

Launch

TIROS-3 was launched on July 12, 1961, by a Thor-Delta rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. The spacecraft functioned nominally until January 22, 1962. The satellite orbited the Earth once every 98 minutes, at an inclination of 47.9°. Its perigee was 742 kilometers (401 nmi) and apogee was 812 kilometers (438 nmi).

Mission

The satellite was in the form of an 18-sided right prism, 107 cm in diameter and 56 cm high. The top and sides of the spacecraft were covered with approximately 9000 1- by 2-cm silicon solar cells. TIROS-3 was equipped with two independent television camera subsystems for taking cloud cover pictures, plus a two-channel low-resolution radiometer, an omnidirectional radiometer, and a five-channel infrared scanning radiometer. All three radiometers were used for measuring radiation from the Earth and its atmosphere.^[3]

The satellite spin rate was maintained between 8 and 12 rpm by use of five diametrically opposed pairs of small, solid-fuel thrusters. The satellite spin axis could be oriented to within 1- to 2-deg accuracy by use of a magnetic control device consisting of 250 cores of wire wound around the outer surface of the spacecraft. The interaction between the induced magnetic field in the spacecraft and the Earth's magnetic field provided the necessary torque for attitude control. The flight control system also optimized the performance of the solar cells and TV cameras and protected the five-channel infrared radiometer from prolonged exposure to direct sunlight.

The spacecraft performed normally until August 1961, when the scanning radiometer began to fail. Performance was sporadic until January 23, 1962. It was deactivated on February 28, 1962.^[3]

Gallery

Major components of TIROS-3
Launch of TIROS-3
Composite of TIROS-3 pictures. The main cloud mass later developed into Hurricane Anna (17 July 1961)
Hurricane Anna by TIROS-3 (July 1961)
Hurricane Esther by TIROS-3 (10 September 1961)
Images of hurricanes by TIROS-3

Related Research Articles

Television InfraRed Observation Satellite (TIROS) is a series of early weather satellites launched by the United States, beginning with TIROS-1 in 1960. TIROS was the first satellite that was capable of remote sensing of the Earth, enabling scientists to view the Earth from a new perspective: space. The program, promoted by Harry Wexler, proved the usefulness of satellite weather observation, at a time when military reconnaissance satellites were secretly in development or use. TIROS demonstrated at that time that "the key to genius is often simplicity". TIROS is an acronym of "Television InfraRed Observation Satellite" and is also the plural of "tiro" which means "a young soldier, a beginner".

NOAA-13, also known as NOAA-I before launch, was an American weather satellite operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). NOAA-I continued the operational, polar orbiting, meteorological satellite series operated by the National Environmental Satellite System (NESS) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). NOAA-I continued the series (fifth) of Advanced TIROS-N (ATN) spacecraft begun with the launch of NOAA-8 (NOAA-E) in 1983. NOAA-I was in an afternoon equator-crossing orbit and was intended to replace the NOAA-11 (NOAA-H) as the prime afternoon (14:00) spacecraft.

TIROS-2 was a spin-stabilized meteorological satellite. It was the second in a series of Television Infrared Observation Satellites. It re-entered in May 2014.

ESSA-1 was a spin-stabilized operational meteorological satellite. Its name was derived from that of its oversight agency, the Environmental Science Services Administration (ESSA).

ESSA-9, also known as TOS-G, was a meteorological satellite. Its name was derived from that of its oversight agency, the Environmental Science Services Administration (ESSA). ESSA-9 replaced the ESSA-7 satellite.

NOAA-6, known as NOAA-A before launch, was an American operational weather satellite for use in the National Operational Environmental Satellite System (NOESS) and for the support of the Global Atmospheric Research Program (GARP) during 1978–1984. The satellite design provided an economical and stable Sun-synchronous platform for advanced operational instruments to measure the atmosphere of Earth, its surface and cloud cover, and the near-space environment.

TIROS-4 was a spin-stabilized meteorological satellite. It was the fourth in a series of Television Infrared Observation Satellites.

TIROS 5 was a spin-stabilized meteorological satellite. It was the fifth in a series of Television Infrared Observation Satellites.

TIROS 6 was a spin-stabilized meteorological satellite. It was the sixth in a series of Television Infrared Observation Satellites.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TIROS-7</span> Former American weather satellite

TIROS-7 was a spin-stabilized meteorological satellite. It was the seventh in a series of Television Infrared Observation Satellites.

TIROS-8 was a spin-stabilized meteorological satellite. It was the eighth in a series of Television Infrared Observation Satellites.

TIROS-9 was a spin-stabilized meteorological satellite. It was the ninth in a series of Television Infrared Observation Satellites.

NOAA-1, also known as ITOS-A was a weather satellite operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). It was part of a series of satellites called ITOS, or improved TIROS.

ITOS-B was a weather satellite operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). It was part of a series of satellites called ITOS, or improved TIROS.

NOAA-5, also known as ITOS-H was a weather satellite operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). It was part of a series of satellites called ITOS, or improved TIROS, being the last of the series. NOAA-5 was launched on a Delta rocket on July 29, 1976.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NOAA-9</span> American weather satellite

NOAA-9, known as NOAA-F before launch, was an American weather satellite operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for use in the National Environmental Satellite Data and Information Service (NESDIS). It was the second of the Advanced TIROS-N series of satellites. The satellite design provided an economical and stable Sun-synchronous platform for advanced operational instruments to measure the atmosphere of Earth, its surface and cloud cover, and the near-space environment.

NOAA-10, known as NOAA-G before launch, was an American weather satellite operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for use in the National Environmental Satellite Data and Information Service (NESDIS). It was the third of the Advanced TIROS-N series of satellites. The satellite design provided an economical and stable Sun-synchronous platform for advanced operational instruments to measure the atmosphere of Earth, its surface and cloud cover, and the near-space environment.

NOAA-11, known as NOAA-H before launch, was an American weather satellite operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for use in the National Operational Environmental Satellite System (NOESS) and for support of the Global Atmospheric Research Program (GARP) during 1978–1984. It was the fourth of the Advanced TIROS-N series of satellites. The satellite design provided an economical and stable Sun-synchronous platform for advanced operational instruments to measure the atmosphere of Earth, its surface and cloud cover, and the near-space environment.

NOAA-12, also known as NOAA-D before launch, was an American weather satellite operated by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), an operational meteorological satellite for use in the National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS). The satellite design provided an economical and stable Sun-synchronous platform for advanced operational instruments to measure the atmosphere of Earth, its surface and cloud cover, and the near-space environment.

NOAA-14, also known as NOAA-J before launch, was an American weather satellite operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). NOAA-14 continued the third-generation operational, Polar Orbiting Environmental Satellite (POES) series operated by the National Environmental Satellite Service (NESS) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). NOAA-14 continued the series of Advanced TIROS-N (ATN) spacecraft begun with the launch of NOAA-8 (NOAA-E) in 1983.

References

↑ "TIROS 3". National Space Science Data Center. Retrieved June 3, 2018.
↑ McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved June 3, 2018.
1 2 "TIROS 3 NSSDCA/COSPAR ID: 1961-017A". NASA. Retrieved June 4, 2018. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .

External links

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Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[nssdc-1] "TIROS 3". National Space Science Data Center. Retrieved June 3, 2018.

[launchlog-2] McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved June 3, 2018.

[NASA-3] 1 2 "TIROS 3 NSSDCA/COSPAR ID: 1961-017A". NASA. Retrieved June 4, 2018. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .

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v t e TIROS satellites
TIROS	TIROS-1 TIROS-2 TIROS-3 TIROS-4 TIROS-5 TIROS-6 TIROS-7 TIROS-8 TIROS-9 TIROS-10
TOS	ESSA-1 ESSA-2 ESSA-3 ESSA-4 ESSA-5 ESSA-6 ESSA-7 ESSA-8 ESSA-9
ITOS	TIROS-M NOAA-1 ITOS-B NOAA-2 NOAA-3 NOAA-4 NOAA-5 ITOS-E
TIROS-N	TIROS-N NOAA-6 NOAA-B NOAA-7
Adv. TIROS-N	NOAA-8 NOAA-9 NOAA-10 NOAA-11 NOAA-12 NOAA-13 NOAA-14 NOAA-15 NOAA-16 NOAA-17 NOAA-18 NOAA-19