The Etalon satellite belongs to the Russian space program. This is a geophysical satellite launched to study the shape of the earth and the determination of exact location of the geological points. It was launched on January 10, 1989 from Baikonur along with two other GLONASS satellites. It is launched at an inclination angle of 64.9 degrees. The expected lifetime for this satellite is about hundreds of years. It orbits the earth in a circular orbit. The shape of the satellite is spherical with a mass of 1415 kg and it has numerous laser reflectors in it. The mission is to determine the terrestrial frame and earth rotation parameters. This satellite is a passive satellite with an instrumentation called as retro-reflector array. The retro-filter array consists of different types of cube corners. With the help of this satellite Russia had developed three laser stations at Ternopol, Yevpatoria and Maydanak. These stations are used to provide laser ranging services to large areas. Apart from Russia, three other countries are also using this satellite for laser ranging services.
Mar 26 2010