The Swedish research satellite MATS has delivered successfully its first images to the scientists.
After only 5 days in orbit after its launch on the 4th of November and successful in-orbit-commissioning of the Satellite, the first images of the upper atmosphere with the instrument on MATS were taken. This milestone marks the outstanding performance of the OHB Sweden owned MATS satellite, its flight-proven InnoSat microsatellite platform and the corresponding operational setup using its inhouse developed Mission Control System RAMSES.
Linda Megner, leading the scientific team on MATS from Stockholm university explains the picture: “What we see in this image is a layer of light in the upper atmosphere at around 80-100km”. “The idea now is to take many such images and to assemble them into three-dimensional structures of the atmosphere. This will form the basis of the overall goal of identifying waves in the air-ocean and understanding their role in the climate system.”
See also here for more info (in Swedish) at the Swedish National Space Agency site.
MATS
MATS (Mesospheric Airglow/Aerosol Tomography and Spectroscopy) is a Swedish science mission to investigate waves in the atmosphere and their impact on the climate. It is financed by the Swedish state through the National Space Agency. The scientific mission is led by the Department of Meteorology (MISU) at Stockholm University with involvement also from KTH and Chalmers. The MATS satellite is owned and operated by OHB Sweden.
OHB Sweden
OHB Sweden is a provider of complete space missions, satellites as well as spacecraft subsystems. With more than 30 years of proven success from a wide range of space missions in low and geostationary orbit as well as spacecraft for interplanetary missions, OHB Sweden has acquired a first-class reputation offering reliable and innovative solutions to its customers. The key expertise from OHB Sweden lies in small satellites, AOCS and propulsion subsystems.
