07 December 2005
On November 26, 2005, the back-up solar array drive on Landsat 5 began exhibiting unusual behaviour. The solar array drive maintains the proper pointing angle between the solar array and the sun. The rotation of the solar array drive became sporadic and the solar array was not able to provide the power needed to charge the batteries. Maintaining power to the batteries is critical to sustain proper operation of the spacecraft.
Quick action by the satellite operator saw the immediate implementation of power saving measures such as suspension of imaging operations. In addition, the solar array was placed in a suitable fixed position to allow the batteries to fully recharge. It is important to understand that while the array isn't moving reliably at its proper rate, it does move and is controllable.
Currently, USGS and NASA engineers are still working to identify the reason that the solar array was not maintaining its proper angle to the sun. All possibilities are being examined, including commanding errors, electronic faults and mechanical issues. The satellite is currently in a stable condition.
Until the investigation is complete, imaging operations will remain suspended. It is unlikely that Landsat TM operations will resume before 1 January 2006. Further updates will be available from the USGS website.
07 December 2005
ACRES Hobart Ground Station - TERSS is now directly downlinking and providing, in near real time, satellite data from the ERS-2 Low Bit Rate (LBR) stream to the European Space Agency (ESA). The LBR stream includes data from the Active Microwave Instrument (AMI) and Radar Altimeter (RA) onboard ERS-2. Ocean wind and wave field parameters like wind speed, direction and sea surface height can be extracted from the LBR data.
18 October 2005
We are pleased to invite ACRES data users to a forum at Geoscience Australia, Canberra, on Tuesday 15 November.
The forum will provide an overview of ACRES' remote sensing activities over the past year and the state of play with current and future remote sensing satellites such as Landsat, TERRA and ALOS. Future directions will also be discussed.
The forum will include time for users to provide feedback, and to identify their future expectations of ACRES in meeting the current and future needs of the Australian remote sensing user community.
Date: Tuesday 15 November
Time: 1:45pm - 5pm
Cost: Free
Place:Geoscience Australia, cnr Hindmarsh Drive and Jerrabomberra Avenue, Symonston, ACT.
RSVP:To secure your seat for the forum you must RSVP by C.O.B. Wednesday 9 November. Please contact (02) 6249 9899 or email earth.observation@ga.gov.au.