Formosat-1

Formosat-1 (Chinese: 福爾摩沙衛星一號; pinyin: Fúěrmóshā wèixīng yīhào, formerly known as ROCSAT-1) was an Earth observation satellite operated by the National Space Program Office (NSPO; now the Taiwan Space Agency) of the Republic of China (Taiwan) to conduct observations of the ionosphere and oceans. The spacecraft and its instrumentation were developed jointly by NSPO and TRW using TRW's Lightsat bus, and was launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, US, by Lockheed Martin on January 27, 1999.^[2] Formosat-1 provided 5½ years of operational service. The spacecraft ended its mission on June 17, 2004 and was decommissioned on July 16, 2004.^[3][4]

Formosat-1
ROCSAT-1
福爾摩沙衛星一號

Mission type	Science
Operator	National Space Organization
COSPAR ID	1999-002A
SATCAT no.	25616
Website	Formosat-1
Mission duration	5.5 years
Spacecraft properties
BOL mass	401 kg
Start of mission
Launch date	Jan 27, 1999
Rocket	ATHENA-1/LMLV1
End of mission
Decay date	22 May 2023[1]
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Inclination	35°
Period	96.7 mins

Technical details

Spacecraft

• Weight: 401 kg
• Shape: Hexagonal
• Dimensions
  • Height: 2.1 m
  • Diameter: 1.1 m
• Solar arrays: Two, 1.16 x 2.46 m
• Electrical power: 450 watts

Instrumentation

• Experimental Communication Payload (ECP)
• Ionosphere Plasma Electrodynamics Instrument (IPEI)
• Ocean Color Imager (OCI)

Orbit

• Altitude: 600 km
• Type: Circular
• Inclination: 35 degrees

See also

• Spaceflight portal

• FORMOSAT-2
• FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC