Doornbos studies the Earth’s thermosphere. He researches how the outer atmosphere heats, cools, expands and contracts under the influence radiation and charged particles from the sun. The Gold instrument (Global scale Observation of the Limb and Disk) on board the Ariane 5 last Thursday could provide important data for his studies. Now, it seems, Doornbos will have to wait a month longer before the data becomes available.
The satellite was not injected into the right transfer orbit, Doornbos explains over the telephone. The explanation for the communications loss has been put down to the rocket deviating from its planned flight trajectory.
NASA’s Gold instrument is attached to the mission’s main satellite SES-14, a communication satellite for (HD)TV and internet will be parked geostationary above South America. The satellite has its own propulsion system to reach the geostationary orbit. But because the launcher went off course, the satellite will need more time to reach the correct orbit. The good news is that it looks like it will reach the planned orbit.
The SES-14 satellite now moves between 20 degrees North and South latitude. Eventually, it should remain fixed above the equator at 47.5 degrees West, 36,000 kilometres above the coast of northern South America.
Why the launcher went off course remains a mystery. Was it a faulty compass reading, a software error or something else altogether? The circumstances will be investigated by an independent enquiry commission in conjunction with the European Space Agency.
Doornbos says the satellite is expected to reach its final orbit in August, a month later than planned and that data from the GOLD instrument is expected to become available three months later.
A mishap occurring with the Ariane 5 rocket is a rare incident. Last Thursday’s launch was preceded by 82 impeccable space missions since 2003. Six more flights are on the planning for this year.
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