Arsene
Perhaps influencing the Taos decision was the disappointing experience with Arsene, launched on 12 May 1993 into a 17,666 km by 37,041 km orbit as a piggy-back payload on an Ariane GEO mission. More than a decade in the making, Arsene was designed as an amateur radio satellite, but some of its systems were to serve as prototypes for future small communications satellites. Unfortunately, the VHF antenna failed immediately after launch, and operations with the vehicle's SHF antenna ultimately led to power supply problems and loss of the 154-kg spacecraft after only three months in orbit (References 64-66).
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
