LISA Pathfinder
LISA Pathfinder, used to be called Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology-2 (SMART-2), was a European Space Agency spacecraft that was launched on December 3, 2015.
More information
The mission tested technology needed for Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA), another mission by ESA that is planned to launch in 2035. The Vega rocket was used to launch LISA Pathfinder. The LISA Pathfinder was testing it's laser interferometer that would later be used for LISA.
A model of the LISA Pathfinder | |
| Names | Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology-2 (SMART-2) |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Technology demonstration |
| COSPAR ID | 2015-070A |
| SATCAT no. | 41043 |
| Mission duration | 576 days |
| Expedition | |
| Began | December 3, 2015, 04:04:00 UTC |
| Start of mission | |
| Rocket | Vega_(rocket) |
| End of mission | |
| Disposal | Decommissioned |
| Deactivated | June 30, 2017 |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Sun-Earth lagrange point |
| Periapsis | 500,000 km |
| Apoapsis | 800,000 km |
| Epoch | Planned |
Horizon 2000+ | |
Related pages
- LISA, planned ESA space observatory.
- Einstien Telescope, a proposed gravitational wave detector.