The Satélite de Aplicaciones Científicas (SAC)-D satellite observatory ended June 8 when an essential part of the power and attitude control system stopped operating.
Preliminary indications by NASA indicate that shut down of an onboard hardware component, called a Remote Terminal Unit (RTU), caused the loss of onboard power regulation and spacecraft attitude stabilization.
The SAC-D system was carrying an Aquarius instrument meant to study the ocean surface salinity in order to link the water cycle and ocean circulation for more accurate computer climate models.
The SAC-D mission, a first to combine use of passive (radiometer) and active (radar) measurements at L band, was launched by NASA in June 2011.
It is a collaborative project between NASA and Argentina’s space agency, Comisión Nacional de Actividades Espaciales (CONAE), with participation from Brazil, Canada, France and Italy.
NASA built the Aquarius instrument, which successfully achieved its science objectives and completed its primary three-year mission in November 2014.The instrument demonstrated that measurements of salinity could be made from space significantly.
The SAC-D spacecraft was provided an optical camera, a thermal camera by CONAE in collaboration with Canada. Instruments like a microwave radiometer and sensors were provided by various Argentine institutions, and France and Italy have also contributed instruments to the mission, whose operations centre is located in Argentina.
The Aquarius sensor collected three years and nine months of valuable data, which will help scientists to understand the interaction between the freshwater sources, the ocean, atmosphere and sea ice. This will in turn influence ocean circulation, weather and climate.
Category:
Science
Space
Entity:
NASA