Explorers Program: Difference between revisions

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The [[Interplanetary Monitoring Platform]] (IMP) was launched in 1963 and involved a network of eleven Explorer satellites designed to collect data on space radiation in support of the [[Apollo program]]. The IMP program was a major step forward in spacecraft [[electronics]] design, as it was the first space program to use [[integrated circuit]] (IC) chips and [[MOSFET]]s (MOS transistors).<ref name="Butrica">{{cite book |last1=Butrica |first1=Andrew J. |chapter=Chapter 3: NASA's Role in the Manufacture of Integrated Circuits |editor-last1=Dick |editor-first1=Steven J. |title=Historical Studies in the Societal Impact of Spaceflight |date=2015 |publisher=NASA |isbn=978-1-62683-027-1 |pages=149-250 (237-242) |chapter-url=https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/historical-studies-societal-impact-spaceflight-ebook_tagged.pdf#page=237}} {{PD-notice}}</ref><ref name="nasa">{{cite book |title=Interplanetary Monitoring Platform |date=29 August 1989 |publisher=NASA |pages=1, 11, 134 |url=https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19800012928.pdf |access-date=12 August 2019 |last1=Butler |first1=P. M.}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> The IMP-A ([[Explorer 18]]) in 1963 was the first spacecraft to use IC chips, and the IMP-D ([[Explorer 33]]) in 1966 was the first to use MOSFETs.<ref name="Butrica"/>

{| class="wikitable sortable"

|+List of [[Interplanetary Monitoring Platform]] (IMP) missions

! rowspan="2" |Mission

! rowspan="2" |Launch Date

! colspan="2" |Satellite

! rowspan="2" |Decay Date

! rowspan="2" |Notes

|-

!Explorer

!IMP

|-

!IMP 1

|27 November 1963, 02:30 UTC<ref name="jonathan">{{cite web |last=McDowell |first=Jonathan |title=Launch Log |url=http://www.planet4589.org/space/log/launchlog.txt |access-date=2018-06-24 |work=Jonathan's Space Page}}</ref>

|[[Explorer 18]]

|IMP-A

|December 30, 1965

|First use of [[Integrated circuit|integrated circuits]] in a spacecraft. First satellite in IMP-A/-B/-C design series.

|-

!IMP 2

|4 October 1964, 03:45 UTC<ref name="jonathan" />

|[[Explorer 21]]

|IMP-B

|January 1, 1966

|Second satellite in IMP-A/-B/-C design series.

|-

!IMP 3

|29 May 1965, 12:00 UTC<ref name="jonathan" />

|[[Explorer 28]]

|IMP-C

|4 July 1968

|Third satellite in IMP-A/-B/-C design series.

|-

!AIMP 1

|1 July 1966, 16:02 UTC<ref name="jonathan" />

|[[Explorer 33]]

|IMP-D

|In orbit

|First use of [[MOSFET]] integrated circuits in a spacecraft, similar design to IMP-E. Originally intended to orbit the Moon, but placed in an elliptical high orbit instead.

|-

!IMP 4

|24 May 1967, 14:05 UTC<ref name="jonathan" />

|[[Explorer 34]]

|IMP-F

|May 3, 1969

|Similar design to IMP-G.

|-

!AIMP 2

|19 July 1967, 14:19 UTC<ref name="jonathan" />

|[[Explorer 35]]

|IMP-E

|After June 24, 1973

|Similar design to IMP-D. Positioned in [[Moon|Selenocentric orbit]].

|-

!IMP 5

|21 June 1969, 08:47 UTC<ref name="jonathan" />

|[[Explorer 41]]

|IMP-G

|December 23, 1972

|Similar design to IMP-F.

|-

!IMP 6

|13 March 1971, 16:15 UTC<ref name="jonathan" />

|[[Explorer 43]]

|IMP-I

|October 2, 1974

|First spacecraft in IMP-I/-H/-J series.

|-

!IMP 7

|23 September 1972, 01:20 UTC<ref name="jonathan" />

|[[Explorer 47]]

|IMP-H

|In orbit

|Second spacecraft in IMP-I/-H/-J series.

|-

!IMP 8

|26 October 1973, 02:26 UTC<ref name="jonathan" />

|[[Explorer 50]]

|IMP-J

|In orbit

|Third spacecraft in IMP-I/-H/-J series, remained in service until 2006

|}

Over the following two decades, NASA has launched over 50 Explorer missions,<ref name= "nssdc_list"/> some in conjunction to military programs, usually of an exploratory or survey nature or had specific objectives not requiring the capabilities of a major space observatory. Explorer satellites have made many important discoveries on: Earth's [[magnetosphere]] and the shape of its [[Gravitational field|gravity field]]; the [[solar wind]]; properties of [[micrometeoroids]] raining down on the [[Earth]]; ultraviolet, cosmic and X-rays from the [[Solar System]] and beyond; [[Ionosphere|ionospheric physics]]; [[Solar flare|Solar plasma]]; [[solar energetic particles]]; and [[Atmospheric science|atmospheric physics]]. These missions have also investigated air density, radio astronomy, [[geodesy]], and [[gamma-ray astronomy]].{{fact|date=September 2024}}