Van Allen Probes
Van Allen Probes in space
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| Names | Radiation Belt Storm Probes |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Astrophysics |
| Operator | NASA |
| COSPAR ID | 2012-046A and 2012-046B |
| SATCAT no. | 38752 and 38753 |
| Website | http://vanallenprobes.jhuapl.edu/ |
| Mission duration | Planned: 2 years Elapsed: 4 years, 6 months and 5 days |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Manufacturer | Applied Physics Laboratory |
| Launch mass | ~1500 kg for both |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 30 August 2012, 08:05 UTC |
| Rocket | Atlas V 401 |
| Launch site | Cape Canaveral SLC-41 |
| Contractor | United Launch Alliance |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Highly elliptical |
| Semi-major axis | 21,887 km (13,600 mi) |
| Perigee | 618 km (384 mi) |
| Apogee | 30,414 km (18,898 mi) |
| Inclination | 10.2° |
| Period | 537.1 minutes |
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The Van Allen Probes (formerly known as the Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP)) are two robotic spacecraft being used to study the Van Allen radiation belts that surround Earth. NASA is conducting the Van Allen Probes mission as part of the Living With a Star program. Understanding the radiation belt environment and its variability has important practical applications in the areas of spacecraft operations, spacecraft system design, mission planning and astronaut safety. The probes were launched on 30 August 2012.
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center manages the overall Living With a Star program of which RBSP is a project, along with Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). The Applied Physics Laboratory is responsible for the overall implementation and instrument management for RBSP. The primary mission is scheduled to last 2 years, with expendables expected to last for 4 years. The spacecraft will also work in close collaboration with the Balloon Array for RBSP Relativistic Electron Losses (BARREL), which can measure particles that break out of the belts and make it all the way to Earth's atmosphere.
The Radiation Belt Storm Probes mission is part of NASA’s Living With a Star program, which is managed by Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt. The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) manages the mission and is building and will operate the Van Allen Probes for NASA.
On 16 March 2009 United Launch Alliance (ULA) announced that NASA had awarded ULA a contract to launch RSBP using an Atlas V 401 rocket. NASA delayed the launch as it counted down to the four-minute mark early morning on 23 August. After bad weather prevented a launch on 24 August, and a further precautionary delay to protect the rocket and satellites from Hurricane Isaac, liftoff occurred on 30 August 2012 at 4:05 AM EDT.
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