Coronas Foton

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General

Designation	33504 / 09003A
Launch date	30 Jan 2009
Country of origin	Russia
Mission	Scientific: Sun study
Perigee/Apogee	539/562 km
Inclination	82.5°
Period
Launch vehicle	Cyclone 3 #122

It will investigate the processes of free energy accumulation in the Sun's atmosphere, accelerated particle phenomena and solar flares, and the correlation between solar activity and magnetic storms on Earth in extreme UV, X-ray and gamma rays.

The power problem started in July 2009 during such an eclipse period when the two onboard batteries failed to provide sufficient power. Switching to a backup battery did not improve the situation. As a consequence, the science payload as well as the satellite's heaters shut down about once a month. The intermittent power supply also led to the failure of a sub-unit in the spacecraft's flight control system and the activation of a backup unit.

sat-index articles

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End of life

Out of service	1 Dec 2009
Cause	Power failure
Decay

Technical data

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Specifications

Prime contractor	Research Institute for Electromechanics
Platform	Meteor-3
Mass at launch	1900 kg
Dry mass
Dimension
Solar array
Stabilization
DC power
Design lifetime	3 years

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