Yinghuo-1
Mission type | Mars orbiter |
---|---|
Operator | CNSA |
Mission duration | 1 year in Mars orbit (planned) Never departed Earth orbit |
Spacecraft properties | |
Launch mass | 115 kilograms (254 lb) solar array |
Start of mission | |
Launch date | 8 November 2011, 20:16:03[2][3][4] | UTC
Rocket | Zenit-2M |
Launch site | Baikonur 45/1 |
Deployed from | Fobos-Grunt (planned) |
End of mission | |
Decay date | 15 January 2012[5] |
Orbital parameters | |
Reference system | Areocentric (planned) Geocentric (achieved) |
Regime | Low Earth (achieved) |
Perigee altitude | 800 kilometres (500 mi) (planned) |
Apogee altitude | 80,000 kilometres (50,000 mi) (planned) |
Inclination | 5 degrees (planned) |
Period | 3 days (planned) |
Yinghuo-1 (
As a result, CNSA subsequently moved to embark on an independent Mars exploration program, which culminated in the Tianwen-1 orbiter-lander-rover mission that successfully landed the Zhurong rover on Mars on 22 May, 2021.[10]
Name
Yinghuo-1's name (simplified Chinese: 萤火; traditional Chinese: 螢火; pinyin: yínghuǒ – firefly, literally "luminous fire") was a tribute to the near-homophone yinghuo (simplified Chinese: 荧惑; traditional Chinese: 熒惑; pinyin: yínghuò). This word, a short form of "shimmering planet" (熒惑星), is an ancient Chinese name for Mars.
Background
On 26 March 2007, the director of the
Instruments and objectives
Yinghuo-1's primary scientific objectives were:
- To conduct detailed investigation of the plasma environment and magnetic field around Mars.
- To study Martian ion escape processes and their possible mechanisms
- To conduct ionosphere occultation measurements between Yinghuo-1 and Fobos-Grunt, focusing on the sub-solar and midnight regions.
- To observe sandstorms on the Martian surface.
The probe's science payload consisted of four instrument:[11][12]
- A mass spectrometer.
- A fluxgate magnetometer.
- A radio-occultation sounder.
- An optical imaging system consisting of two cameras with 200 m (660 ft) resolution for high-quality images of the Martian surface to be captured from orbit.
Mission profile
Following its transit to Mars, Yinghuo-1 was planned to separate from Fobos-Grunt in October 2012
Launch processing
On 17 October 2011, the completed Yinghuo-1 satellite arrived at Baikonur Cosmodrome with Fobos-Grunt, beginning payload processing operations in preparation for its November launch.[15]
Launch and orbital burn failure
China's Yinghuo-1 and the Russian Fobos-Grunt spacecraft were launched together aboard a
Destructive re-entry
On 14 January 2012, it was reported that Fobos-Grunt and Yinghuo-1 were beginning their final descent into Earth's atmosphere, falling at a rate of several hundred metres per hour from their 147-kilometre (91 mi) orbital altitude.[9] The two spacecraft completed their re-entry and disintegrated over the Pacific Ocean on 15 January 2012.[5]
Specifications
- Length: 0.75 metres (2.5 ft) (excluding solar panels).[18]
- Width: 0.75 metres (2.5 ft).[18]
- Height: 0.6 metres (2.0 ft).[18]
- Mass: 115 kilograms (254 lb).[14]
- Power: 3-axis stabilised, 2×3 section solar array with a full-extended length of 5.6 metres (18 ft), providing average power of 90 W, and peak power of 180 W.[14]
- S-band) with a 12 W transmitter in two frequencies (8.4 and 7.17 GHz) and a data rate between 8 bit/s and 16 kbit/s.[14]
- LGA: 80 bit/s data rate.[14]
See also
- Tianwen-1 – Interplanetary mission by China to place an orbiter, lander, and rover on Mars
- Chinese Lunar Exploration Program – Lunar research program (2004 – present)
- List of missions to Mars
References
- ^ a b c d e Lakdawalla, Emily (9 September 2010). "China's Yinghuo-1 Mars Orbiter". The Planetary Society. Archived from the original on 1 April 2012. Retrieved 30 May 2011.
- ^ Nature.com. 4 November 2011. Retrieved 24 April 2013.
- ^ Запуск станции "Фобос-Грунт" к спутнику Марса отложен до 2011 года (in Russian). РИА Новости. 21 September 2009. Retrieved 21 September 2009.
- ^ a b "Solar System Exploration". Archived from the original on 14 June 2011. Retrieved 12 December 2009.
- ^ a b c "Phobos-Grunt: Failed Russian Mars Probe Falls to Earth". ABC News, 15 January 2012.
- ^ "Daring Russian sample return mission to Martian moon Phobos aims for November Liftoff". Universe Today, 2011-10-13. Retrieved 17 October 2011.
- ^ Маршевая двигательная установка станции "Фобос-Грунт" не сработала (in Russian). RIA Novosti. 9 November 2011. Retrieved 20 November 2011.
- ^ a b "Yinghuo Was Worth It". Space Daily, Morris Jones, 17 November 2011. Retrieved 19 November 2011.
- ^ a b "Phobos-Grunt: Failed probe likely to return late Sunday". BBC News, 15 January 2012.
- ^ Myers, Steven Lee; Chang, Kenneth (14 May 2021). "China's Mars Rover Mission Lands on the Red Planet". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 May 2021.
- People's Daily Online. 30 May 2007. Retrieved 12 December 2009.
- ^ "Chapman Conference on the Solar Wind Interaction with Mars" (PDF). San Diego, California. 12 November 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 12 December 2009.
- ^ a b Zak, Anatoly (7 May 2011). "Phobos-Grunt mission". Russianspaceweb.com. Retrieved 30 May 2011.
- ^ a b c d e "YingHuo-1 – Martian Space Environment Exploration Orbiter" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 March 2012. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
- ^ "Phobos-Grunt and Yinghuo-1 arrive at Baikonur Launch Site". Universe Today, 19 October 2011. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
- ^ Маршевая двигательная установка станции "Фобос-Грунт" не сработала (in Russian). RIA Novosti. 9 November 2011. Retrieved 9 November 2011.
- ^ "Russia Running Out of Time, As Mars Mission Seems Destined To Fail". NPR, 11 November 2011. Retrieved 14 November 2011.
- ^ a b c "China to launch first Mars probe in 2009" Archived 6 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Xinhua, 22 May 2007. Retrieved 19 November 2011.
Further reading
- Zheng, Wei; Hsu, Houtse; Zhong, Min; Yun, Meijuan (2011). "China's first-phase Mars Exploration Program: Yinghuo-1 orbiter". Planetary and Space Science. 86: 155–159. .
External links
- Fobos-Grunt at Spacefiles.com Archived 14 February 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Includes an image of Yinghuo-1.