BackForward Satellite Programme: Solar Maximum Mission 

Programme details
Programme description
  • Single-satellite programme, addressing solar physics.
  • USA programme: NASA responsible of development and operations, in collaboration with a wide number of scientific institutes.
  • The satellite is actively stabilised over 3 axes.
  • The design lifetime is 5 years.
  • The orbit is drifting, in low inclination.
  • See detailed description at http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov//solarmax.html.
Data circulation
  • Onboard stored and real-time data downlinked to the NASA stations network.  Use of TDRSS introduced during the exploitation phase.
  • Data processed by the institutes providing the instruments, and eventually distributed by NASA/GSFC.
Agencies NASA
Programme lifetime 1980 - 1989
Associated satellites and instruments

Note: red tag => no longer operational , green tag => operational , blue tag => planned