CASSIOPE/e-POP Fact Sheet
Satellite Name | CASSIOPE. Also known as Swarm-Echo due to its participation in the ESA Swarm mission after 2018. |
Satellite Number | 39265 |
International Designator | 13055A |
Launch Date | September 29, 2013 |
Operations Funding | University of Alaska Fairbanks |
Data Augmentation Funding Agencies | Canadian Space Agency, European Space Agency |
Development Funding Partners | Industrial Technologies Office Canada (Technology Partnerships Canada program), Canadian Space Agency, MDA Space |
Prime Mission Contractor | MDA Space |
Bus Type | Canadian SmallSAT Bus Prototype designed and built by Magellan Aerospace Winnipeg |
Scientific Payload | e-POP |
Commercial Payload | Cascade |
Satellite Dimensions | Hexagonal, 180 cm across x 125 cm high |
Satellite Mass | 500 kg |
Launch Vehicle | SpaceX Falcon 9, v1.1 |
Initial Orbit | 325 x 1500 km, 80.99° inclination |
Orbital Period | 103 minutes (14 orbits per day) |
Projected Lifetime | 2 years |
Science Instruments | VHF/UHF transmitter (CER), VLF/HF receiver (RRI), auroral imagers (2) (FAI), GPS receivers (5) (GAP), ion detector (IRM), electron detector (SEI), neutral particle detector (NMS), magnetometers (2) (MGF) |
Orbit Average Power | Typically around 130 W, max 600 W |
Power Source | Solar array of five solar panels |
Attitude Control System | As of December 17, 2021: Spin-stabilized using torque rods (three of the four momentum wheels have failed, with the fourth turned off). At launch: 3-axis stabilized using magnetometers (2), coarse sun sensors (6), star sensors (2), momentum wheels (4), torque rods (3) |
Bus Data Uplink | S-band, 4 Kbps |
Bus Data Downlink | S-band, up to 4 Mbps |
Cascade Data Uplink/Downlink | Ka-band, > 300 Mbps |
e-POP Data Storage | Up to 1.5 GB/orbit |