Computer-generated image of NOAA-18 in orbit
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Mission type | Weather satellite |
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Operator | NOAA |
COSPAR ID | 2005-018A |
SATCAT no. | 28654 |
Mission duration | 2 years |
Spacecraft properties | |
Spacecraft type | TIROS-N |
Manufacturer | Lockheed Martin |
Launch mass | 1,457 kilograms (3,212 lb) |
Power | 830 watts |
Start of mission | |
Launch date | 20 May 2005, 10:22:01 | UTC
Rocket | Delta II 7320-10C |
Launch site | Vandenberg SLC-2W |
Orbital parameters | |
Reference system | Geocentric |
Regime | Sun-synchronous |
Semi-major axis | 7,230.05 kilometers (4,492.54 mi) |
Eccentricity | 0.0014261 |
Perigee | 848 kilometers (527 mi) |
Apogee | 869 kilometers (540 mi) |
Inclination | 99.17 degrees |
Period | 101.97 minutes |
Epoch | 24 January 2015, 12:53:56 UTC |
NOAA-18, known before launch as NOAA-N, is a weather forecasting satellite run by NOAA. NOAA-N (18) was launched on May 20, 2005, into a sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of 854 km above the Earth, with an orbital period of 102 minutes. It hosts the AMSU-A, MHS, AVHRR, Space Environment Monitor SEM/2 instrument and High Resolution Infrared Radiation Sounder (HIRS) instruments, as well as the SBUV/2 ozone-monitoring instrument. It is the first NOAA POES satellite to use MHS in place of AMSU-B.
APT transmission frequency is 137.9125 MHz (NOAA-18 changed frequencies with NOAA-19 on June 23, 2009).