Tenma
Sign in to saveAlso known as ASTRO-B, Tenma X-ray Satellite Mission
Tenma, known as ASTRO-B before launch, was a Japanese X-ray astronomy satellite developed by the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science. It was launched on 20 February 1983, using a M-3S rocket on the M-3S-3 mission. It was the second X-ray observatory successfully operated by Japan after Hakucho (CORSA-B), and it had a superior temporal and spectral sensitivity compared to its predecessor.
Key facts
- Spaceflight.name
- Tenma
- Spaceflight.names_list
- ASTRO-B
- Spaceflight.image
- Astro-b tenma.gif
- Spaceflight.image_caption
- Tenma (Japanese for "Pegasus")
- Spaceflight.COSPAR_ID
- 1983-011A
- Spaceflight.SATCAT
- 13829
- Spaceflight.operator
- ISAS
- Spaceflight.mission_type
- X-ray astronomy
- Spaceflight.launch_date
- 20 February 1983, 05:10 UTC
- Spaceflight.launch_rocket
- M-3S
- Spaceflight.launch_site
- Kagoshima Space Center
- Spaceflight.disposal_type
- Decommissioned
- Spaceflight.last_contact
- 17 December 1988
- Spaceflight.decay_date
- 19 January 1989
- Spaceflight.orbit_reference
- Geocentric
- Spaceflight.orbit_regime
- Low Earth
- Spaceflight.orbit_inclination
- 31.5°
- Spaceflight.orbit_period
- 94 minutes
via Wikipedia infobox
~1 min read
Encyclopedic overview
5 sectionsContents
- Highlights
- References
- Notes
- Citations
- External links
Tenma, known as ASTRO-B before launch, was a Japanese X-ray astronomy satellite developed by the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science. It was launched on 20 February 1983, using a M-3S rocket on the M-3S-3 mission. It was the second X-ray observatory successfully operated by Japan after Hakucho (CORSA-B), and it had a superior temporal and spectral sensitivity compared to its predecessor.
Battery failure in July 1984 caused the operation to become limited, and continuing problems lead to the termination of X-ray observation on 11 November 1985, however it remained in sporadic contact until 17 December 1988. It reentered the atmosphere on 19 January 1989.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Tenma” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.