The Ukrainian satellite Sich-2-30 that was inserted into orbit by a SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle on January 13 is currently in an energy saving mode. The reason for this was the lack of sunlight to power the device, the Yuzhnoye Design Office reports.
The Design Office confirmed that after the arrival in orbit, it managed to establish communication with the satellite and received telemetry information. This fact confirms that the onboard equipment is in working order. However, the Design Office stresses that it was not possible to establish a steady communication with the spacecraft during the critically important first sessions. Taking this into account, the specialists could not build its nominal attitude in time.
"The current attitude only allows the solar array surface to trap the solar rays reflected from the Earth surface or short-term sun beaming at a very small angle. Combination of these factors resulted in negative influence on the satellite’s energy balance," the report reads.
Yuzhnoye points out that Sich-2-30 was able to autonomously reload and switched to energy saving mode. No failures of onboard equipment were detected. The bureau predicts that in a month or two the spacecraft will change its location and be able to accumulate enough energy to correct its attitude position and start working.
Context. The launch of Sich-2-30 was the first for Ukraine in the last 10 years. The satellite was designed in Dnipro as part of the National Space Program of Ukraine. In early December, the spacecraft was sent to the United States and was launched into space from there on January 13.
Ukraine already had its own spacecraft in orbit: optical remote sensing satellites Sich-1 and Sich-2 and radar satellites Okean-O. These spacecraft were launched into space between 1995 and 2011.
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