Kedr Explained

Kedr
Mission Type:Amateur radio
Operator:RKK Energia
Cospar Id:1998-067CK
Satcat:37772
Mission Duration:6 months
Manufacturer:The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT-NA)
Launch Date: UTC
Launch Site:Baikonur 1/5
Deployment From:ISS
Deployment Date:3 August 2011
Decay Date:4 January 2012
Orbit Reference:Geocentric
Orbit Regime:Low Earth
Apsis:gee

Kedr (Russian: кедр meaning Siberian pine; Yuri Gagarin's callsign during the Vostok 1 mission), also known as ARISSat 1 and RadioSkaf-2 (formerly known as SuitSat 2), was[1] an amateur radio minisatellite operated by RKK Energia as part of the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station and RadioSkaf programmes. A follow-up to the SuitSat spacecraft, Kedr was launched to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Vostok 1 mission.

Kedr transmitted 25 greetings in 15 different languages. It also transmitted photos of the Earth, telemetry and scientific data, voice, telemetry and slow-scan television data on a frequency of 145.950 MHz. The satellite was also intended for use in educational programmes. Kedr was a 30kg (70lb) satellite measuring by by . It carried solar cells to generate power, and was expected to operate for six months.[2]

For launch, Kedr was stored aboard the Progress M-09M spacecraft, which was launched to resupply the International Space Station. Progress M-09M was launched atop a Soyuz-U carrier rocket flying from Site 1/5 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 01:31:39 UTC on 28 January 2011.[3] It docked with the International Space Station at 02:39 UTC on 30 January.[4]

Kedr was deployed from the ISS by Sergey Volkov during an extra-vehicular activity on 3 August 2011 and re-entered Earth's atmosphere on 4 January 2012,[1] having spent 154 days in orbit.

"KEDR" was also used as the suffix for several Russian amateur radio call signs (for example, RS0KEDR) that were active in 2014 around the 80th anniversary of Gagarin's birth.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: ArisSat-1 SK. 4 January 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120306151750/http://www.southgatearc.org/news/january2012/arissat1_sk.htm. 6 March 2012. dead.
  2. Web site: Krebs. Gunter. ARISSat 1 (Radioskaf 2, Kedr). Gunter's Space Page. 10 February 2011.
  3. Web site: ISS On-Orbit Status. NASA. 10 February 2011. 28 January 2011.
  4. Web site: ISS On-Orbit Status. NASA. 10 February 2011. 30 January 2011.