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1992 · Arianespace

Topex-Poseidon, Kitsat 1 & S80/T

successAriane 42P | Topex-Poseidon, Kitsat 1 & S80/T

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.

Overview

Date / time
August 10, 1992 at 11:08 PM UTC
Outcome
success
Launch site
Ariane Launch Area 2
Mission
Topex-Poseidon, Kitsat 1 & S80/T
Mission type
Earth Science
Orbit achieved
Low Earth Orbit
Launch vehicle
Ariane 42P →
Launch provider
Arianespace →

Payloads deployed · 3

KITSAT A (KO-23)
LEO
S80/T
LEO
TOPEX/POSEIDON
LEO