Meteor-M1 Program

Russia to Launch Five Weather Satellites by 2013

Meteor-M-1 - Reacquiring Russian Weather Satellite Capability Independence

4-21-11

The Russian Federal Space Agency finally successfully launched the new Meteor-M-3 weather satellite on the Soyuz-2.1b booster from the Baikonur cosmodrome on September 17, 2009. This 2,700 kilogram five year life span spacecraft is expected to become part of a constellation of weather observation spacecraft to reacquire Russia’s own weather forecasting capability. This is in order to not be dependent on other nations for this data.

Russia has subsequently let it be known in September 2010 that it plans to fully restore its Weather satellite network by 2030 under it State sponsored program. Today Russia has only one working metrological satellite and is thus more dependent on U.S. and European metrological data to fill the many gaps. The Russian Federation State has declared this a priority project to deploy at least 6 satellite in a constellation to provide this service for the vast expanse of the country. Russia is again driven by the Science & Technology competition on the world market to develop competitive technologies in this field for its national economy independence.

In that respect both Russia and China are attempting to become independent of foreign supplies of spacecraft and associated equipment data information as a national security requirement.

That Meteor-M-1 will be a part of a constellation will be about 830 kilometers high in an apparently near polar orbit. Meteor-M-1 for the first time carried a Severyanin-M radar system. Five smaller satellites will also fly with this launch taking advantage of the excess payload capacity capability left in this launch series. Among those was the South African, SumbandilaSat, the Sterkh-2 Russian part of the COSPAS-SARSAT along with the Russian the 17 pound sperical BLITS reflector to study laser range finding and IRIS small satellite payload in addition to a pair of small student built satellitesTatyana-2, UGATUSAT.

Russia’s Hydrometer-logical Center with the help of the Russian, Federal Space Agency plans to have a total of five Meteor-M1 weather satellites operating in a constellation in earth orbit by 2013. Launches are planned to start by the end of 2008 with a second launch planned for early in 2009. The Federal Space Agency plans to utilize the new Soyuz-2 high performance Soyuz booster for these launches. It will place the 2.7 metric tonne five to seven year service life Meteor-M1 satellites into an 830 kilometer circular orbit. Meteor-M1satellites are developed and produced by the Moscow based VNIIEM, NPP(Science and Production Enterprise "All-Russian Scientific and Research Institute of Electro-mechanics") which is subordinate to the Russian, Federal Space Agency. They have long been associated with the Meteor 1, Meteor-2, Meteor-3 and GOMS weather satellite programs. No doubt these satellites represent a design compromise to accommodate getting national weather coverage independent of foreign sourcing that Russia has been dependent on for over a decade now for national reasons in addition to budgetary launch cost limitations. If the economy permits future systems of this type may be able to sustain 10-15 yeas of durable usable operational designs life.

Reference:

 1. Russia To Have Five Weather Satellites By 2013, Moscow, RIA Novosti, Oct, 20, 2008, pp. 1-2, http://wwwspacedaily.com