Explorer 17 Atmosphere Explorer-A upper-atmosphere science spacecraft family
Explorer 17 was a NASA pressurized-sphere satellite launched April 3, 1963 to measure Earth’s upper atmosphere. Its mass spectrometers, vacuum pressure gauges, and electrostatic probes measured atmospheric density, composition, pressure, and temperature during its three-month science mission.
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Identity
- Aliases
- Explorer 17Explorer XVIIAtmosphere Explorer-AAE-AS-6
- Family Name
- Explorer 17
- Full Name
- Explorer 17 Atmosphere Explorer-A upper-atmosphere science spacecraft family
- Roles
- orbiterobservatoryresearch
- Status
- retired
- Type
- spacecraft
Details
- Description
- Explorer 17 was a NASA pressurized-sphere satellite launched April 3, 1963 to measure Earth’s upper atmosphere. Its mass spectrometers, vacuum pressure gauges, and electrostatic probes measured atmospheric density, composition, pressure, and temperature during its three-month science mission.
- First Flight Year
- 1,963
- Last Flight Year
- 1,963
- Operator
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Assets & Meta
- Creation Time
- August 13, 2026 at 13:03:40 UTC
- Updated Time
- August 14, 2026 at 21:25:46 UTC