27643 - CHIPSAT

CHIPS (Cosmic Hot Interstellar Spectrometer) is an American (NASA) astrophysics spacecraft that was launched by a Delta 2 rocket from Vandenberg AFB at 00:45 UT on 2003 January 13. The 60-kg, triaxially-stabilized spacecraft has a spectrograph covering the 9-26 nm wavelength band at a resolution of 0.1 nm, scanning the entire sky in chunks of 5 deg x 27 deg segments during each orbit. The targets are the hot and diffuse nebulae at about a million degrees temperature. The band covers several strong emission lines. The initial orbital parameters were period 96.4 min, apogee 594 km, perigee 578 km, and inclination 94 deg.

Alternate Names

Cosmic Hot Interstellar Plasma Spectrometer
Explorer 82
UNEX/CHIPS

Facts in Brief

Launch Date: 2003-01-13
Launch Vehicle: Delta II
Launch Site: Vandenberg AFB, United States
Mass: 60.0 kg