PARIS -- A German-Russian Rockot launch vehicle successfully placed eight small scientific satellites -- ranging in weight from two to 145 pounds (one to 66 kilograms) -- into two different orbits June 30 from northern Russias Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Eurockot Launch Services GmbH and one of its customers announced.
Liftoff of the three-stage rocket was at 10:15 a.m. EDT (1415 GMT).
The satellites included the 145-pound (66-kilogram) Mimosa satellite, which was the first of the group to be released into orbit, according to Mark Kinnersley of Eurockot. The satellite, designed by the Czech Republics Czech Astronomical Institute, will provide data on the density of the upper atmosphere from an elliptical orbit ranging from 820 kilometers to 320 kilometers in altitude.
After Mimosa was released, the vehicles Breeze upper stage reignited to place the remaining seven satellites into a sun-synchronous orbit 509 miles (820 kilometers) in altitude.
The first to be deployed among these was the Canadian Space Agencys 113-pound (51.3-kilogram) Microvariability and Oscillations of Stars, or Most, satellite. The Most craft carries what Canadian Space Agency President Marc Garneau said in a post-launch statement is "the worlds smallest space telescope, an instrument that helps us better understand our universe by looking at neighboring stars."
The Most satellite was built by the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies, and the telescope was designed and built by the University of British Columbia.
Next to be separated from the Rockots upper stage were two Japanese student-built research satellites -- The University of Tokyos CubeSat XI and the Tokyo Institute of Technology Laboratory for Space Systems Cute-1 spacecraft.
Last into orbit were four nanosatellites weighing between two to seven pounds (one and three kilograms) each. Three two-pound (one-kilogram) satellites were built by the University of Toronto and assembled into the Nanosatellite Launch System, which features a tube-shaped structure from which the satellites were dropped off into orbit.
The fourth nanosatellite is the U.S.-based QuakeFinder Institutes QuakeSat, a seven-pound (three-kilogram) satellite carrying an experiment in earthquake detection.
The Rockots Breeze upper stage also carried a mockup of an Earth observation satellite, called Monitor, which remained attached to the rocket and will be deorbited with the stage.
The Rockot vehicle is marketed by Bremen, Germany-based Eurockot, which is 51 percent owned by EADS Space and 49 percent owned by Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center. Khrunichev assembles the vehicle and designed its restartable Breeze upper stage.
advertisement
