- SELENE
Infobox_Spacecraft
Name = nihongo|Kaguya|かぐや (SELENE)
Caption = The mission mark of KAGUYA
Organization =JAXA
Major_Contractors =
Mission_Type = Orbiter
Flyby_Of =
Satellite_Of =Moon
Orbital_Insertion_Date =
Launch = 01:31:01,14 September ,2007 UTC
Launch_Vehicle =H-IIA
Decay =
Mission_Duration =
NSSDC_ID = 2007-039A
Webpage = [http://www.isas.ac.jp/e/enterp/missions/selene/index.shtml SELENE page]
Mass = 2914 kg (Main Orbiter, launch mass)
Power = 3486 W
Orbital_elements =
Semimajor_Axis =
Eccentricity =
Inclination = 90°
Orbital_Period = 2h
Apoapsis = 100 km
Periapsis = 100 km
Orbits =SELENE (Lang-grc|Σελήνη, "moon"), better known in Japan by its nickname nihongo|Kaguya|かぐや, is the second
Japan ese lunar orbiterspacecraft .cite news | url=http://www.redorbit.com/news/space/1066163/kaguya__another_chapter_for_the_lunar_saga/index.html | title=Kaguya – Another Chapter for the Lunar Saga | publisher=Red Orbit | date=14 September 2007 | accessdate=2007-09-14] Produced by the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science and NASDA (both organizations that are now part of theJapan Aerospace Exploration Agency , or JAXA), the spacecraft was launchedSeptember 14 ,2007 .The name stands for Selenological and Engineering Explorer;
Selene was a lunar deity inGreek mythology . The orbiter's nickname, Kaguya, which was selected by the general public, derives from the name of a lunar princess in the ancient Japanese folktale "The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter ".cite web|url=http://www.jaxa.jp/countdown/f13/special/nickname_e.html| title="KAGUYA" selected as SELENE's nickname| accessdate=2007-10-13] After the successful release of its sub-satellites Rstar and Vstar, they were named Okina and Ouna, also from folklore.cite press release | url=http://www.jaxa.jp/press/2007/10/20071012_kaguya_e.html | title=KAGUYA (SELENE) / Result of the Separation of the VRAD Satellite (Vstar) | date=2007-10-12 | accessdate=2007-10-13]SELENE comes as part of a renewed interest in lunar exploration, being "the largest lunar mission since the
Apollo program ", [cite web |url=http://www.jaxa.jp/projects/sat/selene/index_e.html |title=SELENE: The largest lunar mission since the Apollo program |accessdate=2008-04-21] and following up on Japan's first lunar probe, Hagoromo, launched in1990 . [cite web | url=http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/database/MasterCatalog?sc=1990-007A | title=Hiten | publisher=NASA | accessdate=2007-09-14]China launched theChang'e 1 lunar explorer onOctober 24 ,2007 , withIndia 'sChandrayaan and theUnited States Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter to follow in 2008. TheUnited States ,Europe an countries,Russia ,Japan and China are planning future manned lunar exploration missions or base construction on the moon for the year 2018 or later.Fact|date=September 2007Mission objectives
The main scientific objectives of the mission are:
* Study the origins of the Moon and its geologic evolution
* Obtain information about the lunar surface environment
* Perform radio science on lunar orbitLaunch
SELENE launched at 01:31:01,
September 14 ,2007 UTC on anH-IIA (Model H2A2022) carrier rocket fromTanegashima Space Center into a 281.55 km (perigee ) / 232960 km (apogee ) geocentricparking orbit . [cite web | url = http://planetary.org/news/2007/0914_Kaguya_Rockets_Toward_the_Moon.html | title = Kaguya Rockets Toward the Moon | accessdate = 2007-09-15 | author = Emily Lakdawalla | date = 2007-09-14 ] cite web | url=http://www.jaxa.jp/press/2007/09/20070919_sac_h2a-f13.pdf | title=H-IIAロケット13号機による月周回衛星「かぐや」の打上げ結果について（速報） | language=Japanese |accessdate=1997-09-19 |author=MHI / JAXA] The total launch mass was 3020 kg.cite web | url = http://www.jaxa.jp/press/2007/06/20070613_sac_h2a-f13.pdf | title = 平成19年度夏期ロケット打ち上げおよび追跡管制計画書 (Rocket Launch and Tracking Control Plan, Summer 2007) | publisher = MHI / JAXA |format=PDF |language=Japanese]The SELENE mission was originally scheduled to launch in 2003, but rocket failures on another mission and technical difficulties delayed the launch until 2007. [cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6994272.stm|title=Japan launches first lunar probe |date=14 September 2007|accessdate=2007-09-14] Launch was planned for
August 16 ,2007 , but was postponed due to the discovery that some electronic components were installed incorrectly. [cite web|url=http://www.jaxa.jp/press/2007/07/20070720_kaguya_e.html|title=Launch Postponement of the KAGUYA (SELENE)|date=2007-07-20|accessdate=2007-08-15]Lunar operations
On
October 3 , it reached the moon and entered an initial 101 by 11741 km polar orbit. [cite press release | url=http://www.jaxa.jp/press/2007/10/20071005_kaguya_e.html | title=KAGUYA (SELENE) Result of the Lunar Orbit Injection Maneuver (LOI1) - Lunar orbit injection was confirmed - | date=2007-10-05 | accessdate=2007-10-05 | publisher=JAXA] OnOctober 9 , the relay satellite was released to an approximately 100 by 2400 km orbit, and onOctober 12 the VLBI satellite was released to an approximately 100 by 800 km orbit. Finally, byOctober 19 , the orbiter moved to an approximately 100 km circular orbit.cite web|url=http://www.jaxa.jp/countdown/f13/index_j.html|title= かぐや/H-IIA13号機 打上げ特設サイト|language=Japanese|accessdate=2007-10-01] The nominal operation of the mission is one year, with extension if possible.JAXA announced on October 31, 2007 that Kaguya deployed its Lunar Magnetometer, Lunar Radar Sounder, as well as the Earth-looking Upper Atmosphere and Plasma Imager.
JAXA announced on December 21, 2007 that the operation mode of the lunar explorer, KAGUYA, was shifted to regular operations from its initial verification on December 21, 2007 (Japan Standard Time) as they were able to acquire satisfactory verification results for all fifteen observation missions.
Design
There are three separate units comprising the spacecraft.
Main orbiter
The main orbiter is a rectangular box measuring about 2.1 m by 4.2 m, with a launch mass of about 2914 kg.
:Mass: 2914 kg:Size: 2.1 x 2.1 x 4.8 m:Attitude control:
Three-axis stabilized :Power: 3.5 kW (Max.):Mission period: 1 year:Mission orbit: Circular orbit::Altitude 100 km::Inclination 90 degreeOkina (small relay satellite)
Okina, a small relay satellite (formerly called Rstar) and Ouna, a VLBI satellite (formerly called Vstar) are both octagonal prisms. The relay satellite relays the radio wave from the Earth to the orbiter and also the opposite direction, when the orbiter is hidden behind the moon, to measure the
Doppler shift .:Mass: 53 kg:Size: 1.0 x 1.0 x 0.65 m:Attitude control: spin-stabilized:Power: 70 W:Orbit (initial orbit):::Elliptical orbit (100 km x 2400 km)::Inclination 90 degrees
Ouna (VLBI satellite)
The Vstar (
Very Long Baseline Interferometry satellite) will be used to measure the moon's gravity field, especially of the lunar limb area, where the Doppler shift method cannot be used. :Mass: 53 kg:Size: 1.0 x 1.0 x 0.65 m:Attitude control: spin-stabilized:Power: 70 W:Orbit (initial orbit):::Elliptical orbit (100 km x 800 km)::Inclination 90 degreesPayload
SELENE carries 13 scientific instruments, including imagers, a radar sounder, a laser altimeter, an
X-ray fluorescence spectrometer and agamma ray spectrometer . Their objectives are "to obtain scientific data of the lunar origin and evolution and to develop the technology for the future lunar exploration", according to the official website.cite web |url=http://www.selene.jaxa.jp/index_e.htm |title=Kaguya (SELENE) |accessdate=2007-06-25 |publisher=JAXA]*Terrain camera (TC) (resolution 10 meters per pixel)cite web |url=http://www.selene.jaxa.jp/en/equipment/tc_e.htm |title=LISM [TC, MI, SP] |accessdate=2007-06-25 |work=Kaguya (SELENE) |publisher=JAXA]
*X-Ray fluorescencespectrometer (XRS)
*Lunarmagnetometer (LMAG)
*Spectral profiler (SP) (resolution per pixel is 562 by 400 m)
*Multi-band imager (MI) (resolution of visible light 20 meters per pixel, near-infrared 62 meters per pixel)
*Laseraltimeter (LALT)
*Lunarradar sounder (LRS)
*Gamma ray spectrometer (GRS)
*Charged particle spectrometer (CPS)
*Plasma analyzer (PACE)
*Upper atmosphere and plasma imager (UPI)
*Radio wave repeater (RSAT) aboard Okina
*Radio wave source for VLBI (VRAD) aboard Okina and OunaAlso, an HDTV
camera with 3*CCD 2.2 megapixels, one wide-angle camera and one telephoto camera are on board, primarily for public relations purposes.Along with scientific instruments, JAXA collected names and messages to be carried on SELENE through their "Wish Upon the Moon" campaign. [cite press release | title =Send a New Year's Message to the Moon on Japan's SELENE Mission: Buzz Aldrin, Ray Bradbury and More Have Wished Upon the Moon | publisher = The Planetary Society | date = 2007-01-11 | url =http://www.planetary.org/about/press/releases/2007/0111_Send_a_New_Years_Message_to_the_Moon.html | format = | language = | accessdate =2007-07-14 | quote = ] The 412,627 names and messages collected were printed on a sheet measuring 280 mm × 160 mm, at a size of 70 µm per character. The sheet was installed under the
photovoltaic module s and the cooling panels for the instruments, beneath the multi-layered insulation. [cite web |url=http://www.isas.jaxa.jp/j/new/event/selene_camp/topics.shtml |title=セレーネ「月に願いを!」(SELENE "Wish Upon the Moon!") |accessdate=2007-07-14 |year=2007 |publisher=JAXA |language=Japanese |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote= ]References
ee also
*
Selene-2
*List of future lunar missions
*Exploration of the Moon External links
*en icon [http://www.selene.jaxa.jp/index_e.htm Official project site] , JAXA
*en icon [http://www.jaxa.jp/countdown/f13/index_e.html Official launch information site] , JAXA
* [http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/missions/profile.cfm?MCode=SELENE SELENE Mission Profile] by [http://solarsystem.nasa.gov NASA's Solar System Exploration]
*en icon [http://www.isas.jaxa.jp/e/enterp/missions/selene/index.shtml SELENE overview] , ISAS/JAXA
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
