| GOES-6 | |
| Mission Type: | Weather satellite |
| Operator: | NOAANASA |
| Cospar Id: | 1983-041A |
| Satcat: | 14050 |
| Mission Duration: | 7 years (planned) 6 years (VISSR) 9 years (achieved) |
| Spacecraft Bus: | HS-371 |
| Manufacturer: | Hughes |
| Launch Date: | UTC |
| Launch Rocket: | Delta 3914 |
| Launch Site: | Cape Canaveral LC-17A |
| Launch Contractor: | McDonnell Douglas |
| Disposal Type: | Decommissioned |
| Orbit Reference: | Geocentric |
| Orbit Regime: | Geostationary |
| Orbit Semimajor: | 42151km (26,191miles) |
| Orbit Periapsis: | 35759.4km (22,219.9miles) |
| Orbit Apoapsis: | 35800.9km (22,245.6miles) |
| Orbit Inclination: | 14.7° |
| Orbit Period: | 1,435.1 minutes |
| Orbit Longitude: | 135° West (1983-1984) 97° West (1984) 108° West (1984-1987) 135° West (1987-1992) |
| Apsis: | gee |
GOES-6, known as GOES-F before becoming operational, was a geostationary weather satellite which was operated by the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration as part of the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite system.[1] Launched in 1983, it was used for weather forecasting in the United States.
GOES-6 was built by Hughes Space and Communications, and was based on the HS-371 satellite bus. At launch it had a mass of,[2] with an expected operational lifespan of around seven years.
GOES-F was launched using a Delta 3914 carrier rocket[3] flying from Launch Complex 17A at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.[4] The launch occurred at 22:26 GMT on 28 April 1983.[5]
The launch successfully placed GOES-F into a geosynchronous transfer orbit, from which it raised itself to geostationary orbit by means of an onboard Star 27 apogee motor, with insertion occurring on 9 May 1983.[6]
Following insertion into geosynchronous orbit, GOES-6 was positioned at 135° West. In 1984 it was moved, initially to 97° West, and later to 108° West to cover for the failure of the Visible Infrared Spin-Scan Radiometer on GOES-5. After GOES-7 replaced GOES-5 in 1987, GOES-6 was returned to 135° West, where it remained for the rest of its operational life.[4] Its imager had failed on 21 January 1989,[1] leaving GOES-7 as the only operational GOES satellite for over five years, until the launch of GOES-8 in 1994. Following this failure, it remained operational as a relay satellite until it was retired to a graveyard orbit on 19 May 1992.[1] [6]