Astrid (satellite)
Swedish microsatellites
title: "Astrid (satellite)" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["satellites-orbiting-earth", "space-programme-of-sweden", "science-and-technology-in-sweden", "microsatellites", "geospace-monitoring-satellites"] description: "Swedish microsatellites" topic_path: "geography/sweden" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astrid_(satellite)" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Swedish microsatellites ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox spaceflight"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Astrid 1 and Astrid 2 |
| names_list | |
| image | |
| image_caption | |
| image_alt | |
| image_size | |
| mission_type | |
| operator | Swedish National Space Board |
| Harvard_designation | |
| COSPAR_ID | Astrid 1: 1995-002B |
| Astrid 2: 1998-072B | |
| SATCAT | Astrid 1: 23464 |
| Astrid 2: 25568 | |
| website | Astrid-1 at SSC |
| [http://www.ssc.se/default.asp?groupid | 200491794047899&pageid=200461814501392 Astrid-2 at SSC] |
| mission_duration | Astrid 1: days |
| Astrid 2: days | |
| distance_travelled | |
| orbits_completed | |
| suborbital_range | |
| suborbital_apogee | |
| spacecraft | |
| spacecraft_type | |
| spacecraft_bus | |
| manufacturer | Swedish Space Corporation |
| launch_mass | Astrid 1: 27 kg |
| Astrid 2: | |
| BOL_mass | |
| landing_mass | |
| dry_mass | |
| payload_mass | |
| dimensions | |
| power | Astrid 1: 11.88 W (payload), 38.5 W (nominal) |
| Astrid 2: 16 W (payload), 90 W (nominal) | |
| launch_date | Astrid 1: |
| Astrid 2: | |
| launch_rocket | Cosmos-3M |
| launch_site | |
| launch_contractor | |
| deployment_from | |
| deployment_date | |
| entered_service | |
| disposal_type | Decommissioned |
| deactivated | Astrid 1: (however, on March 1 the scientific instruments became inoperable) |
| Astrid 2: | |
| destroyed | |
| last_contact | |
| recovery_by | |
| recovery_date | |
| decay_date | |
| landing_date | |
| landing_site | Plesetsk Pad 132/1 |
| {{end date | YYYY |
| orbit_reference | Geocentric |
| orbit_regime | |
| orbit_longitude | |
| orbit_slot | |
| orbit_semimajor | |
| orbit_periapsis | Astrid 1: 968 km |
| Astrid 2: 968 km | |
| orbit_apoapsis | Astrid 1: 1026 km |
| Astrid 2: 1014 km | |
| orbit_inclination | Astrid 1: 82.9° |
| Astrid 2: 82.9° | |
| orbit_period | Astrid 1: 105 min |
| Astrid 2: 105 min | |
| orbit_RAAN | |
| orbit_arg_periapsis | |
| orbit_mean_anomaly | |
| orbit_mean_motion | |
| orbit_repeat | |
| orbit_velocity | |
| orbit_epoch | |
| orbit_rev_number | |
| apsis | gee |
| trans_band | |
| trans_frequency | |
| trans_bandwidth | |
| trans_capacity | |
| trans_coverage | |
| trans_TWTA | |
| trans_EIRP | |
| trans_HPBW | |
| insignia | |
| insignia_caption | |
| insignia_alt | |
| insignia_size | |
| :: |
| name = Astrid 1 and Astrid 2 | names_list = Include the dates applicable if possible, and separate each name with a linebreak. Omit if the spacecraft has only ever been known by one name. Do not include Harvard, COSPAR/NSSDC or SATCAT/NORAD/NASA designations as alternative names--
| image = | image_caption = | image_alt = | image_size =
| mission_type = | operator = Swedish National Space Board | Harvard_designation = | COSPAR_ID = Astrid 1: 1995-002B Astrid 2: 1998-072B | SATCAT = Astrid 1: 23464 Astrid 2: 25568 | website = Astrid-1 at SSC Astrid-2 at SSC | mission_duration = Astrid 1: days Astrid 2: days | distance_travelled = | orbits_completed = | suborbital_range = | suborbital_apogee =
| spacecraft = | spacecraft_type = | spacecraft_bus = | manufacturer = Swedish Space Corporation | launch_mass = Astrid 1: 27 kg Astrid 2: | BOL_mass = | landing_mass = | dry_mass = | payload_mass = | dimensions = | power = Astrid 1: 11.88 W (payload), 38.5 W (nominal) Astrid 2: 16 W (payload), 90 W (nominal)
| launch_date = Astrid 1: Astrid 2: | launch_rocket = Cosmos-3M | launch_site = | launch_contractor = | deployment_from = | deployment_date = | entered_service =
| disposal_type = Decommissioned | deactivated = Astrid 1: (however, on March 1 the scientific instruments became inoperable) Astrid 2: | destroyed = | last_contact = | recovery_by = | recovery_date = | decay_date = | landing_date = | landing_site = Plesetsk Pad 132/1 The following template should be used for ONE of the three above fields "end_of_mission", "decay" or "landing" if the spacecraft is no longer operational. If it landed intact, use it for the landing time, otherwise for the date it ceased operations, or the decay date if it was still operational when it re-entered. (for Zulu/UTC) or (if time unknown)
| orbit_reference = Geocentric | orbit_regime = | orbit_longitude = | orbit_slot = | orbit_semimajor = | orbit_eccentricity = | orbit_periapsis = Astrid 1: 968 km Astrid 2: 968 km | orbit_apoapsis = Astrid 1: 1026 km Astrid 2: 1014 km | orbit_inclination = Astrid 1: 82.9° Astrid 2: 82.9° | orbit_period = Astrid 1: 105 min Astrid 2: 105 min | orbit_RAAN = | orbit_arg_periapsis = | orbit_mean_anomaly = | orbit_mean_motion = | orbit_repeat = | orbit_velocity = | orbit_epoch = | orbit_rev_number = | apsis = gee
| trans_band = | trans_frequency = | trans_bandwidth = | trans_capacity = | trans_coverage = | trans_TWTA = | trans_EIRP = | trans_HPBW =
If in doubt, leave it out-- | programme = | previous_mission = | next_mission =
| insignia = | insignia_caption = | insignia_alt = | insignia_size =
Astrid-1 and Astrid-2 were two microsatellites designed and developed by Swedish Space Corporation on behalf of the Swedish National Space Board. They were piggyback launched on a Cosmos-3M launch vehicle from Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russia. Astrid 1 on January 24, 1995, and Astrid 2 on December 10, 1998.
Astrid-1
Sweden's first microsatellite was piggybacked with the launch of Tsikada, a Russian navigation satellite and FAISAT, a United States communications satellite.
It carried an Energetic Neutral Atom imager called PIPPI (Prelude in Planetary Particle Imaging), an Electron Spectrometer called EMIL (Electron Measurements - In-situ and Lightweight) and two UV imagers called MIO (Miniature Imaging Optics), one for imaging the Earth's aurora and one for observing Lyman alpha-emission from the Earth's geocorona. This payload, named after characters in Astrid Lindgren's books (the idea came from a Russian scientist ), was developed by the Swedish Institute of Space Physics in Kiruna.
On March 1, a DC to DC converter for the scientific instruments failed, possibly due to a short circuit, ending its scientific mission. However, the satellite was operated until September 27, serving as a testbed for various software algorithms and store-and-forward communications.
The entire satellite was built in a year and the cost, including launch, was 1.4 million U.S. dollars.
Astrid-2
Astrid-2 was Sweden's second microsatellite and it was piggybacked with Nadezhda 5, a Russian navigation satellite on December 10, 1998, on a Kosmos-3M rocket from Plesetsk in Russia.
Its payload, built by the Swedish Institute of Space Physics in Kiruna and Uppsala and the Royal Institute of Technology (Alfven Laboratory) in Stockholm, was EMMA (Electrical and Magnetic field Monitoring of the Aurora), LINDA (Langmuir INterferometer and Density experiment for Astrid-2), MEDUSA (Miniaturized Electrostatic DUal-tophat Spherical Analyzer) and PIA (Photometers for Imaging the Aurora). It was used to explore the electric and magnetic fields in the upper ionosphere and to measure neutral and charged particles and electron density.
On July 24, 1999, the contact with the satellite was lost. During its months in space, Astrid-2 delivered a large amount of information to researchers.
References
References
- "Satelliter finansierade av Rymdstyrelsen". [[Swedish National Space Board]].
- NASA Mission and Spacecraft Library Astrid-2
- "Astrid-2".
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