PROBA
Mission type | Experimental |
---|---|
Operator | ESA |
COSPAR ID | 2001-049B |
SATCAT № | 26958 |
Spacecraft properties | |
Launch mass | 94 kilograms (207 lb) |
Start of mission | |
Launch date | 22 October 2001, 04:53 UTC |
Rocket | PSLV |
Launch site | Sriharikota FLP |
Orbital parameters | |
Reference system | Geocentric |
Regime | Sun-synchronous |
Eccentricity | 0.008866009302437305 |
Perigee | 553 kilometres (344 mi) |
Apogee | 677 kilometres (421 mi) |
Inclination | 97.9 degrees |
Period | 97 minutes |
PROBA (Project for On-Board Autonomy) was a Belgian satellite launched atop an Indian Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle by ISRO in 2001. The satellite was funded through the ESA's MicroSat program. This small (40×60×80 cm; 95 kg) boxlike system, with solar panel collectors on its surface, has remarkable image-making qualities. It hosts two Earth Observation instruments dubbed CHRIS and HRC. It is a hyperspectral system (200 narrow bands) that image at 30 m, plus three in the visible that have 15 m resolution.
The second satellite in the Proba-series, Proba-2 was launched on November 2, 2009, together with the SMOS mission. Further planned satellites in the Proba series are the formation flight Proba-3 and Proba-V (Proba Vegetation). They are on-going developments without defined launch dates.