LISA Pathfinder

LISA Pathfinder
LISA Pathfinder spacecraft
Model of the LISA Pathfinder spacecraft
Mission typeTechnology demonstrator
OperatorESA[1]
COSPAR ID2015-070A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.41043Edit this on Wikidata
Mission duration576 days
Spacecraft properties
ManufacturerAirbus Defence and Space
Launch mass1,910 kg (4,210 lb)[1]
BOL mass480 kg (1,060 lb)[2]
Dry mass810 kg (1,790 lb)
Payload mass125 kg (276 lb)
Dimensions2.9 m × 2.1 m (9.5 ft × 6.9 ft)
Start of mission
Launch date3 December 2015, 04:04:00 UTC[3][4][5]
RocketVega (VV06)
Launch siteKourou ELV
ContractorArianespace
End of mission
DisposalDecommissioned
Deactivated30 June 2017
Orbital parameters
Reference systemSun–Earth L1
RegimeLissajous orbit
Periapsis altitude500,000 km (310,000 mi)
Apoapsis altitude800,000 km (500,000 mi)
Inclination60 degrees
EpochPlanned
Transponders
BandX band
Bandwidth7 kbit/s
Instruments
~36.7 cm Laser interferometer
LISA Pathfinder insignia
ESA astrophysics insignia for LISA Pathfinder
← Gaia

LISA Pathfinder, formerly Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology-2 (SMART-2), was an ESA spacecraft that was launched on 3 December 2015 on board Vega flight VV06.[3][4][5] The mission tested technologies needed for the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA), an ESA gravitational wave observatory planned to be launched in 2035. The scientific phase started on 8 March 2016 and lasted almost sixteen months.[6] In April 2016 ESA announced that LISA Pathfinder demonstrated that the LISA mission is feasible.

The estimated mission cost was €400 million.[7]

  1. ^ a b "LISA Pathfinder: Operations". ESA. 8 January 2010. Retrieved 5 February 2011.
  2. ^ "LPF (LISA Pathfinder) Mission". ESA eoPortal. Archived from the original on 2015-10-17. Retrieved 2014-03-28.
  3. ^ a b "Launch Schedule". SpaceFlight Now. Archived from the original on 2016-12-24. Retrieved 2015-10-16.
  4. ^ a b "Call for Media: LISA Pathfinder launch". ESA. 23 November 2015.
  5. ^ a b "LISA Pathfinder enroute to gravitational wave demonstration". European Space Agency. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
  6. ^ "News: Top News - LISA Gravitational Wave Observatory". Archived from the original on 2016-04-19.
  7. ^ "LISA Pathfinder To Proceed Despite 100% Cost Growth". Space News. 22 June 2011.