Satellites orbiting Earth

NASA space observatory

Hipparcos was a scientific satellite of the European Space Agency (ESA), launched in 1989 and operated until 1993. It was the first space experiment devoted to precision astrometry, the accurate measurement of the positions and distances of celestial objects on the sky. This was the first practical attempt at all-sky absolute parallax measurement, something not possible with groundside observatories, and thus represented a fundamental breakthrough in astronomy. The resulting high-precision measurements of the absolute positions, proper motions, and parallaxes of stars enabled better calculatio

NASA space observatory

CoRoT (French: ; English: Convection, Rotation and planetary Transits) was a space telescope mission which operated from 2006 to 2013. The mission's two objectives were to search for extrasolar planets with short orbital periods, particularly those of large terrestrial size, and to perform asteroseismology by measuring solar-like oscillations in stars. The mission was led by the French Space Agency (CNES) in conjunction with the European Space Agency (ESA) and other international partners.

Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX or Explorer 83 or SMEX-7) was a NASA orbiting space telescope designed to observe the universe in ultraviolet wavelengths to measure the history of star formation in the universe. In addition to paving the way for future ultraviolet missions, the space telescope allowed astronomers to uncover mysteries about the early universe and how it evolved, as well as better characterize phenomena like black holes and dark matter. GALEX was launched on 28 April 2003 for a 29-month primary mission, which was extended three times before the spacecraft was placed into standb

ESTCube-1 is the first Estonian satellite and first satellite in the world to attempt to use an electric solar wind sail (E-sail). It was launched on 7 May, 2013, aboard Vega VV02 carrier rocket and successfully deployed into the orbit. The CubeSat standard for nanosatellites was followed during the engineering of ESTCube-1, resulting in a 10×10×11.35 cm cube, with a volume of 1 liter and a mass of 1.048 kg.

first satellite launched by China

280px|thumb|right|Animation of XMM-Newton trajectory around Earth XMM-Newton, also known as the High Throughput X-ray Spectroscopy Mission and the X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission, is an X-ray space observatory launched by the European Space Agency in December 1999 on an Ariane 5 rocket. It is the second cornerstone mission of ESA's Horizon 2000 programme. Named after physicist and astronomer Sir Isaac Newton, the spacecraft is tasked with investigating interstellar X-ray sources, performing narrow- and broad-range spectroscopy, and performing the first simultaneous imaging of objects in both X-ray

NASA satellite

ESA space observatory satellite

French satellite

astronomical observatory satellite

space observatory to test frame dragging and geodetic effect

space observatory which reentered in 2023

JAXA space observatory

Azerspace-1/Africasat-1a', is Azerbaijan's first satellite in space. Built by Orbital Sciences Corporation, it was launched by Ariane 5 into orbit on February 7, 2013 from Kourou in French Guiana at orbital positions 46° east. The satellite covers Europe and a significant part of Asia and Africa. It is operated by the Azerbaijani company Azercosmos and has transmission capabilities for TV, radio broadcasting and the internet.

series of American solar space observatories

decommissioned NASA space observatory

former gamma-ray astronomy satellite

space observatory

CALIPSO was a joint NASA (US) and CNES (France) environmental satellite, built in the Cannes Mandelieu Space Center, which was launched atop a Delta II rocket on April 28, 2006. Its name stands for Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations. CALIPSO launched alongside CloudSat.

British Satellite

Japanese X-ray space telescope

'''Queqiao relay satellite''' (), is the first of the pair of communications relay and radio astronomy satellites for the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) launched the Queqiao relay satellite on 20 May 2018 to a halo orbit around the Earth–Moon L2 Lagrangian point Queqiao is the first communication relay and radio astronomy satellite at this location.

NASA satellite

1959 research satellite

NASA space observatory

Bulgaria's first artificial satellite

NASA geomagnetic satellite

NASA satellite of the Explorer program

decommissioned Japanese ultraviolet astronomy satellite

Sina-1 () is the first Iranian artificial satellite, launched at 6:52 UTC October 28, 2005 on board a Cosmos-3M Russian launch vehicle from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome. The rocket was also carrying a Russian military Mozhayets-5 satellite, a Chinese China-DMC, a British TopSat, a European Space Agency SSETI Express (Student Space Exploration and Technology Initiative-Express), a Norwegian nCube, a German UWE-1, and a Japanese XI-V. Sina-1's Satellite Catalog Number or USSPACECOM object number is 28893.

satellite

Chinese scientific satellite

NASA space observatory

asteroid monitoring microsatellite from Canada

KITSAT-1 or KITSAT-A (Korean Institute of Technology Satellite) is the first South Korean satellite to be launched. Once launched, the satellite was given the nickname "Our Star" (우리별). KITSAT-1 operated in a by low Earth orbit (LEO). Of the 12 satellites launched by South Korea, KITSAT-1 is in the highest orbit. While KITSAT-1 maintains equilibrium by gravity gradient forces, magnetic torque can be used to control attitude if needed. The forecasted lifespan of KITSAT-1 was only five years, but communication with the satellite was maintained for 12 years. Since the launch of KITSAT-1, South Ko

Iranian military satellite

French satellite

GSAT-7 or INSAT-4F is a multi-band military communications satellite developed by ISRO. The Indian Navy is the user of the multi-band communication spacecraft, which has been operational since September 2013. According to defense experts, the satellite will enable the navy to extend its blue water capabilities and stop relying on foreign satellites like Inmarsat, which provide communication services to its ships.

Swedish research satellite

The Active Cavity Radiometer Irradiance Monitor Satellite, or ACRIMSAT was a satellite carrying the ACRIM-3 (Active Cavity Radiometer Irradiance Monitor 3) instrument. It was one of the 21 observational components of NASA's Earth Observing System program. The instrument followed upon the ACRIM-1 and ACRIM-2 instruments that were launched on multi-instrument satellite platforms. ACRIMSAT was launched on 20 December 1999 from Vandenberg Air Force Base as the secondary payload on the Taurus launch vehicle that launched KOMPSAT. It was placed into a high inclination of 98.30°, at 720 km. Sun-

SNAP-10A (Systems for Nuclear Auxiliary Power, aka Snapshot for Space Nuclear Auxiliary Power Shot, also known as OPS 4682) was a US experimental nuclear powered satellite launched into space in 1965 as part of the SNAPSHOT program. The test marked both the world's first operation of a nuclear reactor in orbit, and the first operation of an ion thruster system in orbit. It is the only fission reactor power system launched into space by the United States. The reactor stopped working after just 43 days due to a non-nuclear electrical component failure. The Systems Nuclear Auxiliary Power Program

PoSAT-1 (OSAT-OSCAR 28, OSCAR 28, PO 28, 1993-061G), the first Portuguese satellite, was launched into orbit on 26 September 1993, on the 59th flight of the Ariane 4 launch vehicle. The launch took place in the Centre Spatial Guyanais, French Guiana. About 20 minutes and 35 seconds after launch, at an altitude of 807 km, PoSAT-1 separated itself from the launch vehicle.

Swedish artificial satellite

KOMPSAT-2 (Korean Multi-purpose Satellite-2), also known as Arirang-2, is a South Korean multipurpose Earth observation satellite. It was launched from Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russia at 07:45:43 UTC (16:05:43 KST) on 28 July 2006. It began to transmit signals at 14:00 UTC (23:00 KST) the same day. Like the earlier KOMPSAT-1 satellite, it takes its name from the popular Korean folk song Arirang. Its launch was the culmination of a project begun in 1995.

thumb | right | An artist rendering of the KOMPSAT-1 KOMPSAT or Korean Multi-Purpose Satellite is a series of South Korean multipurpose satellite for Earth observation, communications, meteorological, environmental, agricultural, and oceanographic monitoring applications.

Proposed Russian space station

Vietnamese satellite

Tianlian (Simplified Chinese: 天链, Traditional Chinese: 天鏈, English: Sky Link) also known as CTDRS, is a Chinese data relay communication satellite constellation. The constellation serves to relay data from ground stations to spacecraft and rockets, most significantly China's crewed spaceflight program. The system currently consists of ten satellites in two generations, with the first satellite being launched in 2008.

TiungSAT-1 is the first Malaysian microsatellite. The satellite is developed through the technology transfer and training programme between Astronautic Technology Sdn Bhd (ATSB) Malaysia and Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd., United Kingdom. TiungSAT-1 was launched aboard Dnepr rocket from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan on 26 September 2000.

series of satellites used for geophysical research

LituanicaSAT-1 was one of the first two Lithuanian satellites (other one being LitSat-1). It was launched along with the second Cygnus spacecraft and 28 Flock-1 CubeSats aboard an Antares 120 carrier rocket flying from Pad 0B at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on Wallops Island to the International Space Station. The launch was scheduled to occur in December 2013, but later was rescheduled to 9 January 2014 and occurred then. The satellite was broadcasting greetings of Lithuanian president, Mrs. Dalia Grybauskaitė. The satellite was deployed from the International Space Station via the Nan

Jason-3 is a satellite altimeter created by a partnership of the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) and National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA), and is an international cooperative mission in which National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is partnering with the Centre National d'Études Spatiales (CNES, French space agency). The satellite's mission is to supply data for scientific, commercial, and practical applications to sea level rise, sea surface temperature, ocean temperature circulation, and climate change.

ChinaSat () is the brand name of communications satellites operated by China Satellite Communications.

The '''Micro-Satellite à traînée Compensée pour l'Observation du Principe d'Equivalence (Micro-Satellite with Compensated Drag for Observing the Principle of Equivalence, MICROSCOPE''') is a class minisatellite operated by CNES to test the universality of free fall (the equivalence principle) with a precision to the order of , 100 times more precise than can be achieved on Earth. It was launched on 25 April 2016 alongside Sentinel-1B and other small satellites, and was decommissioned around 18 October 2018 after completion of its science objectives. The final report was published in 2022.

U.S. Navy satellite

thumb|The Naval Research Laboratory’s managers for the Timation program and, later, the GPS program: [[Roger L. Easton (left) and Al Bartholomew.]] thumb|Timation 1 (rectangular object in center of photo), launched May 31, 1967, tested in a "piggyback" launch aboard an Air Force Thor-Agena D rocket The Timation satellites were conceived, developed, and launched by the United States Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C. beginning in 1964. The concept of Timation was to broadcast an accurate time reference for use as a ranging signal to receivers on the ground.

pair of French artificial satellites