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Rockot Launches Twin GRACE Spacecraft

More Information:

A Rockot successfully launched two GRACE satellites from Plesetsk Cosmodrome, pad LC 133, at 0921:27 UTC on March 17. The pair, nicknamed Tom and Jerry, Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) spacecraft were launched into a 500 km (270 nmi) orbit with an inclination of 89 degrees.

During their five year mission the GRACE spacecraft will measure the Earth’s gravitational field and also permit a detailed analysis of global climate. The spacecraft will help scientists better understand the composition of the Earth, movement of polar ice and changes in ocean currents, as these all have an impact on changes to the planet's gravitational pull.

The 432 kg (952 lbm) satellites are in an identical orbits, with one trailing the other at a distance of 220 km (118.8 nmi). As the pair pass over the Earth's surface, variations in its gravitational field will cause a slight slowing down or speeding up, altering the distance between the two. A microwave ranging system will accurately measure the distance between the satellites to within a thousandth of a millimeter. The Global Positioning System will be used to track the precise position of both satellites above the Earth's surface. This data will be combined to build a contour map of the Earth's gravitational field.

The satellites were built by Astrium GmbH of Friedrichshafen, Germany, and will be operated from the German Space Operations Center in Oberpfaffenhofen.

The launch was provided by Eurockot Launch Services. Eurockot has a backlog of five launches from U.S., Canadian, Czech and Japanese customers. Its next launch is planned in June, to place two Iridium spacecraft into orbit. Eurockot Launch Services is 51 percent owned by Astrium, with 49 percent owned by Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center of Moscow. Khrunichev manufactures the Rockot vehicle. Astrium has invested US$40 million in the venture. Launch costs were US$8 million.

The US$127 million mission is a collaboration between NASA and Germany's Deutsches Zentrum fur Luft und Rumfahrt (DLR). It is being managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. NASA provided US$97 million and DLR US$30 million of the mission costs.

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March 17, 2002