Spacetrack Directory Name | AURA |
Follow AURA | AURA Tracker |
Pass predictions AURA | Pass predictions AURA |
Orbit launches | 2004-07-15 g.02:00 (20 years ago) |
Days in orbit | 7433 |
Country/organisation of origin | USA (US) |
Starting point | AFWTR (Vandenberg Air Force Base, USA) |
Categories | |
Perigee | 702 km |
Apogee | 703 km |
Orbit slope (inclination) | 98.27° |
Laps per day | 15 |
Orbit | LEO (Sun-Synchronous) |
Height AURA | 709.64 km |
Aura (EOS CH-1) is a multi-national NASA scientific research satellite in orbit around the Earth, studying the Earth's ozone layer, air quality and climate. It is the third major component of the Earth Observing System (EOS) following on Terra (launched 1999) and Aqua (launched 2002). Aura follows on from the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS). Aura is a joint mission between NASA, the Netherlands, Finland, and the U.K. The Aura spacecraft is healthy and is expected to operate until at least 2022, likely beyond.The name "Aura" comes from the Latin word for air. The satellite was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base on July 15, 2004, aboard a Delta II 7920-10L rocket.
The Aura spacecraft has a mass of about 1,765 kg (3,891 lb). The body is 6.9 m (23 ft) long with the extended single solar panel about 15 m (49 ft) long.
Aura flies in a sun-synchronous orbit, in formation with 6 other satellites, collectively known as the "A Train"; it is last in the formation. The other satellites in the formation are:
OCO-2
GCOM-W1
Aqua
CALIPSO
CloudSatAll satellites have an equatorial crossing time at about 1:30 in the afternoon, thus the name 'A (Afternoon) Train'.
In the table below we show the frequencies AURA.
Downlink | Mode |
---|---|
2287.500 MHz | BPSK |