Solar A [ISAS]
The objective of Solar A or Yohkoh (Japanese for sunbeam) is to study the high-energy radiations from solar flares (hard and soft X-rays and energetic neutrons) as well as quiet structures and pre-flare conditions. The mission is a successor to Hinotori, a previous Japanese spacecraft flown at the previous solar activity maximum in 1981.
Yohkoh is a three-axis stabilized observatory-type satellite in a nearly-circular Earth orbit, carrying four instruments: two imagers and two spectrometers. The spacecraft is a rectangular solid about 2 m square and 4 m long. The imaging instruments have almost full-Sun fields of view, to avoid missing any flares on the visible disk of the Sun.
Approximately 50 MB of data are accumulated per day, and stored on an on-board tape recorder with 10.5 Mbyte capacity. The Yohkoh mission is a cooperative mission of Japan, the US, and the United Kingdom.
Nation: | Japan |
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Type / Application: | Solar Observatory |
Operator: | ISAS |
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Equipment: | |
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Propulsion: | |
Power: | 2 deployable fixed solar arrays, batteries |
Lifetime: | |
Mass: | 390 kg |
Orbit: | 517 km × 792 km, 31.3° |
Satellite | COSPAR | Date | LS | Launch Vehicle | Remarks | |
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Solar A (Yohkoh) | 1991-062A | 30.08.1991 | Ka LP-M | M-3S-2 |