HEOS-1
HEOS-1 (Highly Eccentric Orbit Satellite-1) was the first European spacecraft to venture beyond near-Earth space. The ESRO mission used a highly eccentric orbit to study magnetic fields, radiation, and the solar wind outside Earth's magnetosphere, requiring a magnetically clean spacecraft.
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Identity
- Aliases
- HEOS 1HEOS-A1HEOS A1HEOS-AHighly Eccentric Orbit Satellite-11968-109A1968-109-A
- Name
- HEOS-1
- Status
- completed
Details
- Astronauts
- -
- Description
- HEOS-1 (Highly Eccentric Orbit Satellite-1) was the first European spacecraft to venture beyond near-Earth space. The ESRO mission used a highly eccentric orbit to study magnetic fields, radiation, and the solar wind outside Earth's magnetosphere, requiring a magnetically clean spacecraft.
- Destination
- Highly eccentric Earth orbit reaching roughly two-thirds of the way to the Moon, for measurements of interplanetary magnetic fields, radiation, and solar wind outside Earth's magnetosphere
- End Date
- 1975-10-18
- Outcome
- Successful. Launched on 5 December 1968, HEOS-1 operated for about seven years and provided continuous interplanetary observations over most of a solar cycle. Its calibrated magnetometer data became a long-term reference, and on 18 March 1969 it released a barium/copper-oxide canister to trace distant magnetic field lines before reentering on 18 October 1975.
- Programs
- -
- Start Date
- 1968-12-05
- Vehicle Families
Links
Assets & Meta
- Creation Time
- September 7, 2026 at 22:55:58 UTC
- Updated Time
- September 7, 2026 at 22:55:58 UTC
Other
- Affiliations
- -
- Search Name
- HEOS-1 HEOS 1 HEOS-A1 HEOS A1 HEOS-A Highly Eccentric Orbit Satellite-1 1968-109A 1968-109-A
- Space Stations
- -
- Vehicles