The failed MethaneSat climate satellite apparently had problems from launch
According to a detailed New Zealand news report today, the failed MethaneSat climate satellite — funded and operated by the Environmental Defense Fund — apparently had significant problems during its short fifteen month life-span, going into safe mode many times, before failing completely last month.
An earlier report from this same news outlet described more fully the issues — which began in September 2024 only about six months after launch.
The mission’s chief scientist has now said more intense solar activity because of a peak in the sun’s magnetic cycle has been causing MethaneSAT to go into safe mode. The satellite has to be carefully restarted every time.
There has also been a problem with one of the satellite’s three thrusters, which maintain its altitude and steer the spacecraft. MethaneSAT says it can operate fully on two thrusters.
It appears there is a lot of unhappiness in New Zealand for spending $32 million on this project that was designed, built, and operated by an environmental activist organization with little space experience.
What is clear now is that the spacecraft likely got relatively little data during its fifteen month life span.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon. from any other book seller, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
According to a detailed New Zealand news report today, the failed MethaneSat climate satellite — funded and operated by the Environmental Defense Fund — apparently had significant problems during its short fifteen month life-span, going into safe mode many times, before failing completely last month.
An earlier report from this same news outlet described more fully the issues — which began in September 2024 only about six months after launch.
The mission’s chief scientist has now said more intense solar activity because of a peak in the sun’s magnetic cycle has been causing MethaneSAT to go into safe mode. The satellite has to be carefully restarted every time.
There has also been a problem with one of the satellite’s three thrusters, which maintain its altitude and steer the spacecraft. MethaneSAT says it can operate fully on two thrusters.
It appears there is a lot of unhappiness in New Zealand for spending $32 million on this project that was designed, built, and operated by an environmental activist organization with little space experience.
What is clear now is that the spacecraft likely got relatively little data during its fifteen month life span.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon. from any other book seller, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Imagine that–folks who want to hold the world hostage to carbon footprint nonsense don’t have sense enough or appreciation for technical knowledge needed to launch a satellite that works.
Ha!
That’s even worse than guys on a dirt pile screaming Ayn Rand passages at rolls of steel hoping it flies.
I don’t speak Australian but I’d swear a lot of those sentences in that lengthy first linked article are missing verbs and nouns.
The Environmental Defense Fund is an NGO. Why is an NGO receiving money from the government? If it does it’s no longer an NGO.
A radical environmental leftist coworker is constantly leaving magazines from various environmental groups in the break room, like “Mono Lake Newsletter”, “Conservation International”, “Pacific Crest Communicator”. They are all expensive, professionally printed, color magazines. There must be hundreds of such NGOs, all professing that the only way to save the environment is communism.
Our tax dollars at work.
Perhaps somebody will do some digging and we’ll find out U.S.A.I.D. (American taxpayers) funded much of the $32MM. Thank goodness the money spigot got closed!
These big expensive satellites need to go. The amount of money all riding on a single item in a harsh environment just seems wasteful. It is better to create multiple copies of smaller craft. Test, launch, learn, test, launch, succeed. With a replicable process you reap benefits of costs. Of course satellites are getting bigger now after a short period of working smaller. Too bad.
You need a big light bucket for optics –you can’t cube-sat your way out.