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Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) will be launching the Greenhouse Gases Observing Satellite "IBUKI" (GOSAT) developed by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). The satellite will be mounted on top of the H-IIA Launch Vehicle No.15 (H-IIA F15) and launched from the Tanegashima Space Center.
| Scheduled Launch Date | January 23 (Friday), 2009 |
|---|---|
| Scheduled Launch Window | 12:54 p.m. through 1:16 p.m. JST |
| Reserved Launch Period | January 24 (Saturday) through February 28 (Saturday), 2009, excluding January 26 (Monday), 2009 January 26, 2009 is ruled out as a launch date because of the expected impact of the solar eclipse to take place one day later. |
| Launch Site | Yoshinobu Launch Complex at JAXA's Tanegashima Space Center |
| IBUKI Injection Orbit | Sun-synchronous subrecurrent orbit (orbital parameters shown below): Perigee Altitude: 667 kilometers Apogee Altitude: 683 kilometers Inclination: 98.0 degrees |
In order to promote preventive measures for global warming that are adopted by countries all over the world, it is imperative to learn the behavior of greenhouse gases that cause global warming on earth. The Greenhouse Gases Observing Satellite "IBUKI" (GOSAT) is a collaborative project by JAXA, the National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES,) and the Ministry of the Environment (MOE) to provide the world's first satellite to observe global greenhouse gasses from space. Data acquired by the "IBUKI" will be utilized to learn the "current" status of the earth concerning global warming and to contribute to a better future for all mankind.
Courtesy of JAXA
The H-IIA Launch Vehicle Flight No. 15 (H-IIA F15) used to inject IBUKI into sun-synchronous subrecurrent orbit will be an H2A202 model with a 4S Payload Fairing, prepared by MHI. After injecting IBUKI, the H-IIA F15 will issue the separation commands to seven other piggyback payloads into their respective orbits, one after another. For more details, please see our Flight Trajectory and Flight Timeline.
More details for piggyback payloads (JAXA’s website)
Piggyback Payloads (Courtesy of JAXA)
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| Length (meter) | 53 |
| Liftoff Mass (metric ton) | 289 (without payload mass) |
| Guidance Method | Inertial Guidance Method |
| Item | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Stage | SRB-A | Second Stage | Payload Fairing | |
| Length (meter) | 37 | 15 | 11 | 12 |
| Diameter (meter) | 4.0 | 2.5 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| Mass (metric ton) | 114 | 153 (2 units) |
20 | 1.4 |
| Propellant Mass (metric ton) | 101 | 132 (2 units) |
17 | - |
| Thrust (kilo Newton) | 1,100 * | 4,525 * | 137 * | - |
| Burning Time (second) | 390 | 120 | 530 | - |
| Propellant | LOX / LH2 | Polybutadiene Composite Solid Propellant |
LOX / LH2 | - |
| Propellant Loading Method | Turbo pump | - | Turbo pump | - |
| Specific Impulse (second) | 440 * | 283.6 * | 448 * | - |
| Altitude Control | Gimbal engine system, Auxiliary engine |
Gimballed nozzle system |
Gimbal engine system, Gas jet system |
- |
| Avionics | Control Systems, Telemetry Transmitter |
- | Guidance Navigation and Control Systems, Rader Transponder, Telemetry Transmitter, Command Destruct Receivet |
- |
