Starshine 3 (also called SO-43 and OSCAR 43) is one of five satellites in the
Starshine
The STARSHINE (Student Tracked Atmospheric Research Satellite Heuristic International Networking Experiment) series of three (later, a fourth one was also launched) artificial satellites were student participatory missions sponsored by the United S ...
project (Student Tracked Atmospheric Research Satellite for Heuristic International Equipment).
Starshine 3's main task was to study the density of the Earth's
upper atmosphere Upper atmosphere is a collective term that refers to various layers of the atmosphere of the Earth above the troposphere and corresponding regions of the atmospheres of other planets, and includes:
* The mesosphere, which on Earth lies between th ...
. In addition, the and heavy spherical satellite body was covered with 1,500
mirror
A mirror or looking glass is an object that reflects an image. Light that bounces off a mirror will show an image of whatever is in front of it, when focused through the lens of the eye or a camera. Mirrors reverse the direction of the im ...
s, which were manufactured by machine technology students in
Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
and polished by almost 40,000 students in 1,000 different schools. In addition, 31
laser reflectors and a radio beacon in the
amateur radio frequency
Frequency is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit of time. It is also occasionally referred to as ''temporal frequency'' for clarity, and is distinct from ''angular frequency''. Frequency is measured in hertz (Hz) which is eq ...
range (145.825 MHz) were attached. The transmitter was powered by
solar cell
A solar cell, or photovoltaic cell, is an electronic device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect, which is a physical and chemical phenomenon. s and batteries. Starshine 3 had neither drive nor position control.
Mission
The satellite, together with the
PICOSat,
PCSat and
SAPPHIRE
Sapphire is a precious gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum, consisting of aluminium oxide () with trace amounts of elements such as iron, titanium, chromium, vanadium, or magnesium. The name sapphire is derived via the Latin "sa ...
satellites, was launched on September 30, 2001 with an
Athena I rocket from
Kodiak Launch Complex,
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
, USA.
Because of the mirrors, the satellite was visible to the naked eye from
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...
at night. Students measured the difference in the daily shortening orbital period and derived the density of the
atmosphere. They also measured fluctuations in the intensity of
UV radiation
Ultraviolet (UV) is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelength from 10 nm (with a corresponding frequency around 30 PHz) to 400 nm (750 THz), shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation i ...
from the
sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is a nearly perfect ball of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core. The Sun radiates this energy mainly as light, ultraviolet, and infrared radi ...
, which they associated with different densities in the atmosphere.
Starshine 3 burned up on January 21, 2003 after 7,434 orbits in the earth's atmosphere about two years earlier than originally expected.
See also
*
OSCAR
Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to:
People
* Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms.
* Oscar (Irish mythology) ...
*
STARSHINE (satellite)
The STARSHINE (Student Tracked Atmospheric Research Satellite Heuristic International Networking Experiment) series of three (later, a fourth one was also launched) artificial satellites were student participatory missions sponsored by the United S ...
External links
* . NASA
References
{{US-spacecraft-stub
Amateur radio satellites
Spacecraft launched in 2001