MESSENGER
MESSENGER, MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry and Ranging, was an unmanned NASA and APL spacecraft.[7] It was orbiting and studying the planet Mercury.[7] Its mission lasted 10 years, 8 months and 28 days.
 Artist's rendering of MESSENGER orbiting Mercury. | |
| Mission type | Mercury probe |
|---|---|
| Operator | NASA |
| COSPAR ID | 2004-030A |
| SATCAT no. | 28391 |
| Website | messenger |
| Mission duration | Total: 10 years, 8 months and 27 days At Mercury: 4 years, 1 month and 14 days En route: 7 years Primary mission: 1 year First extension: 1 year[1] Second extension: 2 years[2][3] |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Manufacturer | Applied Physics Laboratory |
| Launch mass | 1,107.9 kg (2,443 lb) |
| Power | 450 watts |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | August 3, 2004, 06:15:56 UTC |
| Rocket | Delta II 7925H-9.5 |
| Launch site | Cape Canaveral SLC-17B |
| Entered service | April 4, 2011 |
| End of mission | |
| Disposal | Deorbited |
| Destroyed | April 30, 2015 at 19:26 UT[4] |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Hermiocentric |
| Perihermion | 200 kilometers (120 mi) |
| Apohermion | 10,300 kilometers (6,400 mi) |
| Inclination | 80 degrees |
| Period | 12 hours |
| Epoch | Jan 1, 2000[5] |
| Flyby of Earth (gravity assist) | |
| Closest approach | August 2, 2005 |
| Distance | 2,347 kilometers (1,458 mi) |
| Flyby of Venus (gravity assist) | |
| Closest approach | October 24, 2006 |
| Distance | 2,990 kilometers (1,860 mi) |
| Flyby of Venus (gravity assist) | |
| Closest approach | June 5, 2007 |
| Distance | 337 kilometers (209 mi) |
| Flyby of Mercury | |
| Closest approach | January 14, 2008 |
| Distance | 200 kilometers (120 mi) |
| Flyby of Mercury | |
| Closest approach | October 6, 2008 |
| Distance | 200 kilometers (120 mi) |
| Flyby of Mercury | |
| Closest approach | September 29, 2009 |
| Distance | 228 kilometers (142 mi) |
| Mercury orbiter | |
| Orbital insertion | March 18, 2011, 01:00 UTC[6] |
| |
It was launched on August 3, 2004[7][8] at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. It was aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket.[8] After launch, the probe did several fly-bys and deep space manoeuvres to gain the right trajectory and speed.[7]
It completed 30% mapping of Mercury on January 14, 2008. MESSENGER made one more pass by Mercury in 2009, and on March 18, 2011 began to orbit Mercury.[7][9] 100% mapping was completed in March 2013 and the probe continued its studies. On April 30, 2015, it crashed into Mercury. It crashed near the crater Janáček.
References
change- ↑ "NASA extends spacecraft's Mercury mission". UPI. November 15, 2011. Retrieved December 20, 2012.
- ↑ Wu, Brian (April 3, 2015). "NASA Set to Extend Mercury Mission for Another Month". Johns Hopkins University APL. The Science Times. Retrieved April 4, 2015.
- ↑ "MESSENGER's Operations at Mercury Extended". Johns Hopkins University APL. SpaceRef.com. April 3, 2015. Retrieved April 4, 2015.[permanent dead link]
- ↑ "Beyond Earth: A Chronicle of Deep Space Exploration".
- ↑ Domingue, D.L.; Russell, C.T. (2007). Messenger mission to Mercury (1st ed.). New York: Springer. pp. 225–245. ISBN 9780387772141.
- ↑ Lee, Jimmy; Galuska, Mike (March 18, 2011). "NASA Chats – MESSENGER Prepares to Orbit Mercury". NASA. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved March 18, 2011.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 How it works book of amazing technology : everything you need to know about the world's best tech. Bournemouth: Imagine Pub. 2011. pp. 48–49. ISBN 978-1-908222-08-4. OCLC 784550467.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Launch Coverage: MESSENGER Mission". NASA. Archived from the original on 2011-08-04. Retrieved 2011-07-30.
- ↑ Murchie, Scott L.; Vervack Jr., Ronald J.; Anderson, Brian J. (March 2011), "Journey to the Innermost Planet", Scientific American, vol. 304, no. 3, New York, pp. 26–31, Bibcode:2011SciAm.304c..34M, doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0311-34, PMID 21438487
