HEAO 3 [NASA]
The HEAO 3 (High-Energy Astronomy Observatory 3) mission performed a sky survey of gamma rays and cosmic rays in a manner similar to HEAO 1. It had a higher orbital inclination than the previous missions in this series, since the payload consisted primarily of cosmic-ray instrumentation; greater cosmic-ray flux occurs near the earth's magnetic poles. The scientific objectives of the mission were
The normal operating mode was a continuous celestial scan about the Z axis (which nominally pointed to the sun).
HEAO 3 featured a Gamma ray spectrometer with 4 cryogenically cooled germanium detectors, each with an energy range of 50 keV.to 10 MeV.
Experiments on board were:
Nation: | USA |
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Type / Application: | Astronomy, X-Ray, Gamma |
Operator: | NASA |
Contractors: | TRW |
Equipment: | Gamma ray spectrometer |
Configuration: | HEAO Bus |
Propulsion: | |
Power: | Solar cells, batteries |
Lifetime: | |
Mass: | 3150 kg |
Orbit: | 485 km × 501 km, 43.6° |
Satellite | COSPAR | Date | LS | Launch Vehicle | Remarks | |
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HEAO 3 | 1979-082A | 20.09.1979 | CC LC-36B | Atlas-SLV3D Centaur-D1AR |