ArianespaceAriane 42PAriane Launch Area 2, Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana
Topex-Poseidon, Kitsat 1 & S80/T
Launched
August 10, 1992
Image: NASA
Summary
Topex-Poseidon, Kitsat 1 & S80/T launched on an Arianespace Ariane 42P from Ariane Launch Area 2, Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana on August 10, 1992. It was Arianespace's 51st launch, 4th this year and humanity's 3,741st orbital launch attempt. It was the 2nd Ariane 42P flight and the 1st this year. The payload was bound for low Earth orbit (LEO). Topex-Poseidon, one of 14 catalogued objects, reached a 1,324 × 1,338 km orbit inclined 66.1°. 14 objects from this launch are catalogued, 3 of them payloads.
- Watch
- No webcast on record.
- Vehicle
- Ariane 42P · Arianespace
- Booster
- No booster details on record.
- Mission
- Earth Science · Low Earth Orbit (LEO)
- Milestone
- 2nd Ariane 42P flight · 1st this yearArianespace's 51st launch4th this yearhumanity's 3,741st orbital launch attempt53rd orbital launch attempt this year
Flight preview
Orbit: as tracked
Topex-Poseidon · NORAD 22076 · 1992-052 · Space-Track · tracking 1 of 14 objects
Show the numbers for orbit elements
- Object
- TOPEX/POSEIDON
- Object ID
- 1992-052A
- Epoch
- 1992-08-11 02:59:12 UTC
- Mean motion
- 12.8435529 rev/day
- Eccentricity
- 0.000926
- Inclination
- 66.0773°
- Ascending node
- 253.3689°
- Arg. of perigee
- 300.8296°
- Mean anomaly
- 59.1765°
- Element set
- 999
- Rev at epoch
- 2
- B*
- 0.61267
Perigee, apogee and period are Kepler figures from the catalogued mean elements, not a propagated state. Published orbit: LEO. Ascent drawn from padside's representative profile.
Catalogued objects
14 catalogued: 3 payloads, 1 rocket stage, 10 debris; 14 still in orbit
- Topex-Poseidon · NORAD 22076 · in orbit
- Kitsat-OSCAR-23 · NORAD 22077 · in orbit
- S80/T · NORAD 22078 · in orbit
Ariane H10 V52 · in orbit
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
The TOPEX/POSEIDON satellite was launched on 10 August 1992 with the objective of "observing and understanding the ocean circulation". A joint project between NASA, the U.S. space agency, and CNES, the French space agency, it carries two radar altimeters and precise orbit determination systems, including the DORIS system. KITSAT-1 (Korean Institute of Technology Satellite) was a collaborative research mission, encompassing the installation of a groundstation in South Korea, participation of Korean engineers in the UoSAT-5 mission, technology transfer and training of students on the MSc courses at Surrey, and the involvement in a engineering and flight microsatellites. The S80/T satellite was built for CNES by Matra Marconi Space using the Surrey Satellite Technology Microbus (Uosat) bus.
Pad
Ariane Launch Area 2, Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana
27th launch from Ariane Launch Area 2, 4th this year · 61st from Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana
119 launches from this pad · 336 from Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana
32 days after the previous launch from this pad
All launches from Guiana Space Centre, French GuianaOpen in maps
Questions
When did Topex-Poseidon, Kitsat 1 & S80/T launch?
Topex-Poseidon, Kitsat 1 & S80/T launched on August 10, 1992. The time is known to the hour, not the minute.
Where can I watch Topex-Poseidon, Kitsat 1 & S80/T?
No webcast is on record for this launch.
What rocket launched Topex-Poseidon, Kitsat 1 & S80/T?
Ariane 42P, flown by Arianespace. Ariane 42P spec sheet
Where did Topex-Poseidon, Kitsat 1 & S80/T launch from?
Ariane Launch Area 2, Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana.
What orbit did Topex-Poseidon, Kitsat 1 & S80/T reach?
Topex-Poseidon, one of 14 catalogued objects, reached a 1,324 × 1,338 km orbit inclined 66.1°.
How many satellites did Topex-Poseidon, Kitsat 1 & S80/T launch?
3 payloads from this launch are catalogued, 3 of them still in orbit (Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org).