Cosmic Penguin
Geek Penguin in GTO
Tomorrow two Japanese satellites will be launched from southern Japan on the an H-IIA rocket, but unlike most other launches there aren't a lot of public advertisements on this. Why? Because they are spysats!
The two satellites are part of the Japanese government's IGS program. Consisting of optical and radar satellites, it is a key for monitoring the complex situation over far east Asia and beyond. The pair of satellites include an operational radar satellite (with probably sub-meter resolution) and a demonstration optical satellite with abilities reported to distinguish objects down to 40 cm.
The launch from Tanegashima island is planned at 04:40 UTC tomorrow, most probably into 500 km polar orbits. The 22nd H-IIA rocket will fly in the basic 202 configuration with two solid rocket boosters.
Some Japanese volunteers have arrived there for live coverage of the launch (and the rollout, which is occurring right as I type this post), so watch this thread for launch updates!
Webcast (starts at around 04:00 UTC): http://www.ustream.tv/channel/nvs-live
The two satellites are part of the Japanese government's IGS program. Consisting of optical and radar satellites, it is a key for monitoring the complex situation over far east Asia and beyond. The pair of satellites include an operational radar satellite (with probably sub-meter resolution) and a demonstration optical satellite with abilities reported to distinguish objects down to 40 cm.
The launch from Tanegashima island is planned at 04:40 UTC tomorrow, most probably into 500 km polar orbits. The 22nd H-IIA rocket will fly in the basic 202 configuration with two solid rocket boosters.
Some Japanese volunteers have arrived there for live coverage of the launch (and the rollout, which is occurring right as I type this post), so watch this thread for launch updates!
Webcast (starts at around 04:00 UTC): http://www.ustream.tv/channel/nvs-live
