Pegasus is an air-launched launch vehicle developed by Orbital Sciences Corporation (OSC) and now built and launched by Northrop Grumman. Pegasus is the world's first privately developed orbital launch vehicle. Capable of carrying small payloads of up to 443 kg (977 lb) into low Earth orbit, Pegasus first flew in 1990 and remains active as of 2021. The vehicle consists of three solid propellant stages and an optional monopropellant fourth stage. Pegasus is released from its carrier aircraft at approximately 12,000 m (39,000 ft), and its first stage has a wing and a tail to provide lift and altitude control while in the atmosphere. Notably, the first stage does not have a thrust vector control (TVC) system.
The Kwangmyŏngsŏng program was a class of experimental satellites developed by North Korea. The name Kwangmyŏngsŏng is from a poem written by Kim Il Sung. The first class of satellites built by North Korea, the program started in the mid-1980s. There have been five launches so far, of which two have been successful.
KOMPSAT-1, also known as Arirang-1, was a satellite created by the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), and launched by a United States launch vehicle on 21 December 1999. This was the first satellite built primarily by South Korean engineers, although previous foreign-built satellites had been launched by Korean companies. It took its name from the popular Korean folk song Arirang.
The Space Test Program (STP) is the primary provider of spaceflight for the United States Department of Defense (DoD) space science and technology community. STP is managed by a group within the Advanced Systems and Development Directorate, a directorate of the Space and Missile Systems Center of the United States Space Force. STP provides spaceflight via the International Space Station (ISS), piggybacks, secondary payloads and dedicated launch services.
TacSat-3 is the second in a series of U.S. military experimental technology and communication satellites. It was assembled in an Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Space Vehicles Directorate facility at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico. The TacSat satellites are all designed to demonstrate the ability to provide real-time data collected from space to combatant commanders in the field.
PoSAT-1, the first Portuguese satellite, was launched into orbit on 26 September 1993, on the 59th flight of the Ariane 40 launch vehicle. The launch took place in the Centre Spatial Guyanais, French Guiana. About 20 minutes and 35 seconds after launch, at an altitude of 807 km, PoSAT-1 separated itself from the launch vehicle.
The STSat-1, formerly known as KAISTSat-4, is an ultraviolet telescope in a satellite. It is funded by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), and was launched on 27 September 2003, from Plesetsk Cosmodrome by a Kosmos-3M launch vehicle, into an Earth orbit with a height between 675 and 695 km.
During the second half of 2002, the Naval Research Laboratory studied the tactical application of space assets. Relatively new technologies and processes in the areas of microsatellites, affordable and quick-response launch vehicles, and the classified SIPRNet made tactical use of space assets possible in the relatively near term. The DoD's Office of Force Transformation (OFT) agreed with the core findings of the study and decided to start an Operationally Responsive Space (ORS) Initiative consisting of a series of experiments. TacSat-1 is the first experiment in this OFT initiative. The TacSat-1 experiment received go-ahead on 7 May 2003.
The Micro-satellite Technology Experiment (MiTEx) is a microsatellite-based mission launched into geosynchronous orbit 21 June 2006 aboard a Delta II rocket. The USAF described the mission as a "technology demonstration" for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the United States Air Force (USAF) and the United States Navy.
KITSAT-1 or KITSAT-A is the first South Korean satellite to be launched. Once launched, the satellite was given the nickname "Our Star". KITSAT-1 operated in a 818 miles (1,316 km) by 825 miles (1,328 km) low Earth orbit (LEO). Of the 12 satellites launched by South Korea, KITSAT-1 is in the highest orbit. While KITSAT-1 maintains equilibrium by gravity gradient forces, magnetic torque can be used to control attitude if needed. The forecasted lifespan of KITSAT-1 was only five years, but communication with the satellite was maintained for 12 years. Since the launch of KITSAT-1, South Korea launched an additional 36 satellites by 2020.
STSat-2B, or Science and Technology Satellite-2B, was a South Korean satellite which was lost in the failure of the second flight of the Naro-1 launch vehicle. It was to have been operated by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), and was intended to demonstrate technology for future spacecraft. The satellite had a mass of 100 kg (220 lb), and was expected to operate for at least two years.
Oceansat-1 or IRS-P4 was the first Indian satellite built primarily for ocean applications. It was a part of the Indian Remote Sensing Programme satellite series. The satellite carried an Ocean Colour Monitor (OCM) and a Multi-frequency Scanning Microwave Radiometer (MSMR) for oceanographic studies. Oceansat-1 thus vastly augment the IRS satellite system of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) comprising four satellites, IRS-1B, IRS-1C, IRS-P3 and IRS-1D and extend remote sensing applications to several newer areas.
OA-4, previously known as Orbital-4, was the fourth successful flight of the Orbital ATK uncrewed resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its third flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-1) contract with NASA. With the Antares launch vehicle undergoing a redesign following its failure during the Orb-3 launch, OA-4 was launched by an Atlas V launch vehicle. Following three launch delays due to inclement weather beginning on 3 December 2015, OA-4 was launched at 21:44:57 UTC on 6 December 2015. With a liftoff weight of 7,492 kg (16,517 lb), OA-4 became the heaviest payload ever launched on an Atlas V. The spacecraft rendezvoused with and was berthed to the ISS on 9 December 2015. It was released on 19 February 2016 after 72 days at the International Space Station. Deorbit occurred on 20 February 2016 at approximately 16:00 UTC.
KAIST Satellite Technology Research Center, is a university based research center for satellite technology and applications research.
KITSAT-3 was a South Korean remote sensing minisatellite which carried MEIS and SENSE instruments to low Earth orbit (LEO). Launched on 26 May 1999 by Indian space agency Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), on orbit the satellite was renamed to Uribyol-3. Manufactured by KAIST Satellite Technology Research Center (SaTReC), KITSAT-3 was developed with experience from KITSAT-1 and KITSAT-2 and was the first independently designed South Korean satellite.
Educational Launch of Nanosatellites (ELaNa) is an initiative created by NASA to attract and retain students in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines. The program is managed by the Launch Services Program (LSP) at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
SPHEREx is a future near-infrared space observatory that will perform an all-sky survey to measure the near-infrared spectra of approximately 450 million galaxies. In February 2019, SPHEREx was selected by NASA for its next Medium-Class Explorers mission, beating out two competing mission concepts: Arcus and FINESSE. As of August 2022, SPHEREx is targeted to launch no earlier than April 2025 on a Falcon 9 launch vehicle from Vandenberg Space Force Base. The principal investigator is James Bock at California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena, California.
Eyesat-1 is an American experimental communications microsatellite with an store-dump payload. The mission of Eyesat-1 was experimental monitoring of mobile industrial equipment. Eyesat-1 has provided the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Silver Spring, Maryland, with communication services to the South Pole. Eyesat-1 carries an FM repeater for Amateur Radio Research and Development Corporation (AMRAD) called AMRAD OSCAR 27 or OSCAR 27.
SpaceX CRS-23, also known as SpX-23, was a Commercial Resupply Service mission to the International Space Station, successfully launched on 29 August 2021 and docking the following day. The mission was contracted by NASA and was flown by SpaceX using the Cargo Dragon C208. This was the third flight for SpaceX under NASA's CRS Phase 2 contract awarded in January 2016. It was the second mission for this reusable capsule.
