Multi-Functional Transport Satellite
Encyclopedia
Multifunctional Transport Satellites (MTSAT) are a series of weather
and aviation control satellites. They are geostationary satellites owned and operated by the Japan
ese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Japan Meteorological Agency
(JMA), and provide coverage for the hemisphere centred on 140° East; this includes Japan and Australia
who are the principal users of the satellite imagery that MTSAT provides. They replace the GMS
-5 satellite, also known as Himawari 5 (“himawari” or “ひまわり” meaning “sunflower”). They can provide imagery in five wavelength bands — visible and four infrared
, including the water vapour channel. The visible light camera has a resolution of 1 km; the infrared cameras have 4 km (resolution is lower away from the equator at 140° East). The spacecraft have a planned lifespan of five years. MTSAT-1 and 1R were built by Space Systems/Loral
. MTSAT-2 was built by Mitsubishi.
rocket, failed on November 15, 1999 and the spacecraft was destroyed. GMS-5, the satellite MTSAT-1 was intended to replace, was decommissioned on April 1, 2003 leaving Japan without weather satellite imagery.
(NOAA) loaned the GOES-9 satellite to the JMA and repositioned it over 145° East on May 22, 2003.
on February 26, 2005 and became partially operational on June 28, 2005 — the aviation payload was not functional as two MTSATs are required for air traffic control. GOES-9 was decommissioned when MTSAT-1R came online in June 2005.
Weather satellite
The weather satellite is a type of satellite that is primarily used to monitor the weather and climate of the Earth. Satellites can be either polar orbiting, seeing the same swath of the Earth every 12 hours, or geostationary, hovering over the same spot on Earth by orbiting over the equator while...
and aviation control satellites. They are geostationary satellites owned and operated by the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Japan Meteorological Agency
Japan Meteorological Agency
The or JMA, is the Japanese government's weather service. Charged with gathering and reporting weather data and forecasts in Japan, it is a semi-autonomous part of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport...
(JMA), and provide coverage for the hemisphere centred on 140° East; this includes Japan and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
who are the principal users of the satellite imagery that MTSAT provides. They replace the GMS
Geostationary meteorological satellite
Himawari orGeostationary Meteorological Satellite , was a series of Japanese weather satellites operated by the Japan Meteorological Agency. The first GMS satellite was launched 14 July 1977 from Cape Canaveral. The fifth and final satellite was launched 18 March 1995 from Tanegashima...
-5 satellite, also known as Himawari 5 (“himawari” or “ひまわり” meaning “sunflower”). They can provide imagery in five wavelength bands — visible and four infrared
Infrared
Infrared light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength longer than that of visible light, measured from the nominal edge of visible red light at 0.74 micrometres , and extending conventionally to 300 µm...
, including the water vapour channel. The visible light camera has a resolution of 1 km; the infrared cameras have 4 km (resolution is lower away from the equator at 140° East). The spacecraft have a planned lifespan of five years. MTSAT-1 and 1R were built by Space Systems/Loral
Space Systems/Loral
Space Systems/Loral , of Palo Alto, California, is the wholly owned manufacturing subsidiary of Loral Space & Communications. It was acquired in 1990 for $715 million by Loral Corp. from Ford Motor Company as the Space Systems Division of Ford Aerospace...
. MTSAT-2 was built by Mitsubishi.
Launch failure
The launch of MTSAT-1, on a Japanese H-IIH-II
The H-II rocket was a Japanese satellite launch system, which flew seven times between 1994 and 1999, with five successes. It was developed by NASDA in order to give Japan a capability to launch larger satellites in the 1990s. It was the first two-stage liquid-fuelled rocket Japan made using only...
rocket, failed on November 15, 1999 and the spacecraft was destroyed. GMS-5, the satellite MTSAT-1 was intended to replace, was decommissioned on April 1, 2003 leaving Japan without weather satellite imagery.
NOAA loan
To fill in the void, The United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric AdministrationNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration , pronounced , like "noah", is a scientific agency within the United States Department of Commerce focused on the conditions of the oceans and the atmosphere...
(NOAA) loaned the GOES-9 satellite to the JMA and repositioned it over 145° East on May 22, 2003.
MTSAT-1R
MTSAT-1R (also known as Himawari 6) was successfully launched on a H-IIAH-IIA
H-IIA is an active expendable launch system operated by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency . The liquid-fueled H-IIA rockets have been used to launch satellites into geostationary orbit, to launch a lunar orbiting spacecraft, and to launch an interplanetary...
on February 26, 2005 and became partially operational on June 28, 2005 — the aviation payload was not functional as two MTSATs are required for air traffic control. GOES-9 was decommissioned when MTSAT-1R came online in June 2005.
MTSAT-2
MTSAT-2 (also known as Himawari 7) successfully launched on February 18, 2006 and is positioned at 145° East. The weather functions of MTSAT-2 were put into hibernation until the end of MTSAT-1R’s life (5 years from launch). The transportation and communication functions of MTSAT-2 will be utilized prior to that time.Attitude control malfunction
On November 5, 2007 JMA announced a malfunction in the attitude control of MTSAT-2. Attitude control was restored November 7, 2007. The presumed cause of the malfunction was improper functioning of an attitude control thruster. A spare thruster was used to return the spacecraft to normal operation.External links
- JMA Satellite Activities (accessed August 13, 2005)
- MTSAT information from Australian Bureau of Meteorology (accessed August 13, 2005)
- Gunter's Space Page:
- Loral.com: Loral-built MTSAT-1R multi-functional satellite successfully launched
- JMA Website (English)
- MTSAT weather satellite viewer Online MTSAT weather satellite viewer with 2 months of archived data.