* Astronomy

A Rockot Rocket Body (SL-19) launched from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome on the 26th August 2005 for the Monitor-E mission, is predicted to re-enter the Earths atmosphere on the 13th September 2005 @ 23:18 UTC ± 9 hours



TLE Data

SL-19 R/B
1 28823U 05032B 05255.74355924 .06125551 23579-5 17215-3 0 591
2 28823 097.7400 329.0315 0101887 196.9772 162.8004 16.28115005 2700

Although the launch was successful, there were initial difficulties establishing a link with the rocket propelling the satellite.
The Roskosmos space agency vice-director Nikolai Moisseyev had said earlier the satellite might be lost and was out of control.

But today, "a liaison session has been carried out with the satellite. It is under control," according to a Khrunichev space centre official .

So all is well with the Monitor-E satellite.

The Yakhta-based Monitor family of small spacecraft is designed to serve as an EO constellation.
The KhSC EO constellation plan envisages four types of optoelectronic spacecraft (Monitor E, Monitor I #1, Monitor I #2, Monitor S and Monitor O) and two models of SAR spacecraft (Monitor RZ and Monitor R23).

Monitor I’s instruments have more spectral bands and a better resolution as compared to Monitor E.
Applications:
Agriculture, irrigation, forestry, environmental monitoring, geological mapping, prospecting, forecasting dangerous geodynamic phenomena, disaster monitoring and disaster impact assessment, hydrology, oceanology, and 1:50,000 mapping.

Monitor S, a 3D panchromatic imager with a 4-m resolution, will be a good addition to the earlier satellites to broaden the range of applications.
Applications:
1:25,000 mapping, inventory of natural resources, surveying, architectural design and construction, geological mapping, prospecting, forecasting dangerous geodynamic phenomena, disaster monitoring and disaster impact assessment, agriculture, forestry, and environmental monitoring.

Monitor O carries a high-resolution camera (1 or 2 m).
Applications:
1:10,000 mapping, inventory of natural resources, surveying, design and construction, geological mapping, prospecting for mineral resources, forecasting dangerous geodynamic phenomena, disaster monitoring and impact assessment, agriculture, irrigation, forestry, environmental monitoring and hydrology.

Monitor R3 will be equipped with an X-band (3.2-cm) SAR with resolutions of 3 to 5, 20/40 or 100 m.
Applications:
Monitoring ice conditions, oceanology, 1:25,000 mapping, geological mapping and prospecting, disaster monitoring and impact assessment, agriculture, and environmental monitoring.

Monitor R3 will be equipped with an L-band (23.2-cm) SAR with resolutions of 5 to 10, 20/40 or 100 m.
Applications:
1:25,000 mapping, oceanology, hydrology, geological mapping and prospecting, disaster monitoring and impact assessment, agriculture, forestry, and environmental monitoring.

Monitor E, the first spacecraft from this family, will carry two cameras (one with an 8-m and the other with a 20-m resolution) and was first launched by a Rockot LV from Plesetsk in 2003.

That launch was an experimental mission whose goal was to finalize the design of both the dedicated instruments and Yakhta service systems. Monitor E flew a sun-synchronous orbit with an altitude of 540 km and an inclination of 97.5 degrees.

The E in Monitor-E stands for "experimental."
The Monitor-E represents a new generation of spacecraft with intelligent onboard systems. It is non-sealed (unpressurised) and of modular design. It is fitted out with two optical electronic cameras of 8-m and 20-m resolution.
It has been designed using the Yakhta unified space platform developed at Khrunichev.

With the Monitor-E, the Russian satellite fleet will later include the new, advanced probes Monitor-I (thermal), Monitor-S (stereo), and Monitor-O (high-resolution) that will be fitted a variety of optical electronic devices, and also the Monitor-R with onboard radar. All of them will be launched by the light-class Rokot carrier rocket.

The satellites will allow for improvements to be made in such fields as geographic and thematic mapping, land surveying, pollution control and environmental monitoring, hydro-engineering and land improvement, logging and reforestation, mineral exploration, transport planning, safety at sea, seafood production, and the safety of the fishing industry.