MicroLab-1
MicroLab-1 was a compact atmospheric-research spacecraft carrying NASA's Optical Transient Detector and the GPS/MET radio-occultation experiment. OTD mapped lightning globally from orbit, while GPS/MET demonstrated that the bending and delay of navigation-satellite signals could retrieve atmospheric temperature and refractivity profiles.
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Identity
- Aliases
- Microlab 1OrbView-11995-017C
- Name
- MicroLab-1
- Slug
- microlab-1
- Status
- completed
Details
- Astronauts
- -
- Description
- MicroLab-1 was a compact atmospheric-research spacecraft carrying NASA's Optical Transient Detector and the GPS/MET radio-occultation experiment. OTD mapped lightning globally from orbit, while GPS/MET demonstrated that the bending and delay of navigation-satellite signals could retrieve atmospheric temperature and refractivity profiles.
- Launch Site
- Outcome
- MicroLab-1 reached orbit and validated two influential observing techniques. GPS/MET demonstrated Earth-atmosphere radio occultation using GPS signals, while the Optical Transient Detector operated through March 2000 and produced a global lightning record that revealed major land-ocean and storm-pattern differences and informed later lightning sensors.
- Program
- GPS/MET and Optical Transient Detector
- Start Date
- 1995-04-03
- Vehicle Families
Links
Assets & Meta
- Creation Time
- July 18, 2026 at 18:01:36 UTC
- Updated Time
- July 18, 2026 at 18:01:36 UTC
Other
- Affiliations
- Space Stations
- -
- Vehicles