Delta II
SuccessNOAA 18 · United States Air Force
Launch time (NET)
Friday, May 20, 2005, 10:22 UTC
Launch window
Friday, May 20, 2005, 10:22 UTC – Friday, May 20, 2005, 10:22 UTC
Provider
United States Air Force
Rocket
Launch pad
Space Launch Complex 2W, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA · Open map
Status
Success
The launch vehicle successfully inserted its payload(s) into the target orbit(s).
Mission
NOAA 18
Type
Earth Science
Orbit
Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO)
NOAA-18, known before launch as NOAA-N, is a weather forecasting satellite run by NOAA. NOAA-N (18) was launched on May 20, 2005, into a sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of 854 km above the Earth, with an orbital period of 102 minutes. It hosts the AMSU-A, MHS, AVHRR, Space Environment Monitor SEM/2 instrument and High Resolution Infrared Radiation Sounder (HIRS) instruments, as well as the SBUV/2 ozone-monitoring instrument. It is the first NOAA POES satellite to use MHS in place of AMSU-B. NOAA-18 also hosts Cospas-Sarsat payloads.
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