-------- Original Message --------
Subject:        Landsat Project Special Update - Landsat 5 Anomaly 2009
Date:   Fri, 14 Aug 2009 11:05:25 -0500
From:   John C Fouke <[log in to unmask]>
To:

Subject:
Update - Re: Fw: Landsat Project Special Update - Landsat 5 Anomaly 2009


The Landsat Team and Ron Beck got a news release posted yesterday
afternoon.


Satellite is Now Stabilized and the Cause is Being Investigated
Landsat 5 tumbled out of control and power was at a critical level in the
early morning of August 13.

The cause for this anomaly is currently unknown and being investigated.
The spacecraft has been stabilized after the USGS Landsat Flight
Operations Team initiated recovery operations. Power is still at a
critical level, and the extent of damage is yet to be determined. Imaging
operations are suspended until further notice.

?Landsat 5 has proven to be a remarkable success and has given the science
community important information on land features of the planet,? said USGS
Landsat Program manager Kristi Kline. ?It was launched in 1984 and
designed to last 3 years with a possible extension to five years.
Incredibly it is still a valuable resource and by early 2009, it had
completed over 129,000 orbits and acquired over 700,000 individual
scenes.?

Landsat 5 provided data demonstrating alterations over Chernobyl region
after the nuclear power plant eruption, de-forestation of tropical rain
forests, drought and flooding in the Mississippi River basin, construction
of the Three Gorges dam in China, shrinking of the Aral Sea, Northern
Wisconsin after a tornado pass, the impact of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita,
and countless forest and wildfire outbreaks.

For more information about Landsat 5 and others in the Landsat series,
visit the Landsat Missions Web site.





From:
USGS Landsat Project <[log in to unmask]>


Date:
08/13/2009 11:53 AM
Subject:
Landsat Project Special Update - Landsat 5 Anomaly 2009




Landsat Update
The Landsat Project is managed by the U.S. Geological Survey under
authority established by Presidential Decision Directive NSTC-3.


August 13, 2009 - Landsat 5 Anomaly
Landsat 5 experienced an anomaly in the early morning hours of August 13,
2009. The Flight Operations Team (FOT) is assessing the problem and
testing spacecraft systems. No imaging will occur until further notice.

At 0523Z, the Landsat 5 spacecraft experienced an attitude anomaly
characterized by extreme gyro rates. The spacecraft proceeded to tumble
out of control for some time until the FOT was able to stabilize the
satellite attitude (positioning). At this point, the spacecraft is stable
and the FOT is beginning to analyze the data from the anomaly.

Check this site (http://landsat.usgs.gov/) for further information as it
is available.



The Landsat Update is an informal communication tool, prepared
periodically and distributed electronically to USGS Landsat partners, to
provide information about Landsat activities and related topics of
interest. To contact the Landsat Project the email address is:
[log in to unmask]
U.S. Department of the Interior
U.S. Geological Survey