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

Launch Provider & Rocket

• Provider: Arianespace (Commercial)
• Rocket: Ariane 42P — Ariane family

Mission

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.

• Type: Earth Science
• Orbit: Low Earth Orbit (LEO)

Launch Site

• Pad: Ariane Launch Area 2
• Location: Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana
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