SCISAT-1
SCISAT-1 is a Canadian satellite designed to make observations of the Earth's atmosphere. Its most important instrument is an optical Fourier transform infrared spectrometer, the ACE-FTS Instrument. This device records the spectrum of the Sun, as sunlight passes through the Earth's atmosphere, and makes an analysis of the chemical elements of the atmosphere possible.
SCISAT is a relatively small satellite weighing 150 kg (~330 pounds). It is partly drum shaped with a diameter of about five feet and a depth of about five feet. The Canadian Space Agency coordinated its design, launch and use. The main contractors were Bristol Aerospace of Winnipeg, Manitoba and ABB Bomem inc. of Quebec City, Quebec.
SCISAT orbits through the Earth's shadow 15 times per day, profiting from the occultation of the Sun to make a spectrographic analysis of the structure and chemistry of those parts of the upper atmosphere that are too high to be reached by balloons and airplanes and too low to be visited by orbiting satellites. This kind of analysis can help understand the depletion of the ozone layer and other upper atmosphere phenomena.
SCISAT was placed in low Earth orbit, or LEO, by a Pegasus rocket launched from a carrier aircraft on August 12, 2003. It is expected to operate for two to five years.
The University of Waterloo, University of York, the University of Toronto, and several other Canadian universities collaborated in the design of the experiments, and in several aspects of the testing of the satellite.
External Links
- [1] ABB Bomem inc.