Lockheed MartinAtlas IIASSpace Launch Complex 3E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
Terra
Launched
December 18, 1999
Image: NASA
Summary
Terra launched on a Lockheed Martin Atlas IIAS from Space Launch Complex 3E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA on December 18, 1999. It was Lockheed Martin's 46th launch, 8th this year and humanity's 4,362nd orbital launch attempt. It was the 18th Atlas IIAS flight and the 4th this year. The payload was bound for Polar Orbit (PO). Terra, one of 2 catalogued objects, reached a 667 × 704 km orbit inclined 98.2°. 2 objects from this launch are catalogued, one of them a payload.
- Watch
- No webcast on record.
- Vehicle
- Atlas IIAS · Lockheed MartinNASA Large Strategic Science Missions
- Booster
- No booster details on record.
- Mission
- Earth Science · Polar Orbit (PO)
- Milestone
- 18th Atlas IIAS flight · 4th this yearLockheed Martin's 46th launch8th this yearhumanity's 4,362nd orbital launch attempt73rd orbital launch attempt this year
Flight preview
Orbit: as tracked
Terra · NORAD 25994 · 1999-068 · Space-Track · tracking 1 of 2 objects
Show the numbers for orbit elements
- Object
- TERRA
- Object ID
- 1999-068A
- Epoch
- 1999-12-18 20:02:43 UTC
- Mean motion
- 14.64664121 rev/day
- Eccentricity
- 0.0026528
- Inclination
- 98.2112°
- Ascending node
- 66.9361°
- Arg. of perigee
- 147.8117°
- Mean anomaly
- 212.9753°
- Element set
- 999
- Rev at epoch
- 0
- B*
- 0
Perigee, apogee and period are Kepler figures from the catalogued mean elements, not a propagated state. Published orbit: PO. Ascent drawn from padside's representative profile.
Catalogued objects
2 catalogued: 1 payload, 1 rocket stage; 1 still in orbit
- Terra · NORAD 25994 · in orbit
Centaur AC-141 · re-entered September 21, 2000
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
The Terra (formally known as EOS-AM-1) satellite is the flagship of EOS. It provides global data on the state of the atmosphere, land, and oceans, as well as their interactions with solar radiation and with one another.
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Pad

Space Launch Complex 3E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
29th launch from Space Launch Complex 3E, 1st this year · 596th from Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
48 launches from this pad · 919 from Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
about 13 years after the previous launch from this pad
Questions
When did Terra launch?
Terra launched on December 18, 1999. The time is known to the hour, not the minute.
Where can I watch Terra?
No webcast is on record for this launch.
What rocket launched Terra?
Atlas IIAS, flown by Lockheed Martin. Atlas IIAS spec sheet
Where did Terra launch from?
Space Launch Complex 3E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA.
What orbit did Terra reach?
Terra, one of 2 catalogued objects, reached a 667 × 704 km orbit inclined 98.2°.
How many satellites did Terra launch?
1 payload from this launch is catalogued, still in orbit (Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org).
Which program is Terra part of?
NASA Large Strategic Science Missions. About NASA Large Strategic Science Missions
