Hipparcos

HIgh Precision PARallax COllecting Satellite, named as a Greek astronomer of the 2nd century before JC: Hipparkhos

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General

Designation	20169 / 89062B
Launch date	8 Aug 1989
Country of origin	Europe
Mission	Scientific: astronomy
Perigee/Apogee	498/35889 km
Inclination	6.5°
Period	638.7 min
Launch vehicle	Ariane V33

Was intended on geostationary 12°W slot but its Mage motor didn't work. The data it provided from Nov 1989 on was recalculated to match its orbital position.

Hipparcos observed 118274 stars with a precision between 0.0008 and 0.002 arcsec depending on the objects magnitude. 10000 double stars were observed including 7000 which were discovered by the satellite. It also discovered numerous variable stars.

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End of life

Out of service	15 Aug 1993
Cause	Stopped transmitting in June 1993

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External resources

http://astro.estec.esa.nl/SA-general/Projects/Hipparcos/hipparcos.html

sat-index articles

Technical data

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Specifications

Prime contractor	Matra Marconi Space
Mass at launch	1140 kg
Payload mass	200 kg
Diameter	2.5 m
Height	3 m
Stabilization	3-axis
DC power	380 W
Design lifetime	2.5 years

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Schmidt telescope & photon detector

Telescope aperture	0.29 m
Field of view	0.9 x 0.9°
Frequency band	visible: 375-750 nm
Telemetry/data	S-band

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