Solar Maximum Mission

Author(s): DaveBowman2001

Release date:

The Solar Maximum Mission (SolarMax) is a solar observatory launched in February 1980 that prematurely malfunctioned in November of the same year. Four years later, it became the first-ever satellite repaired in space during the STS-41-C (Challenger) mission in April 1984. Afterwards it continued to observe the Sun until an intense geomagnetic storm on March 1989 accelerated its orbital decay until it reentered the Earth's atmosphere on December 1989

NOTES:

• Requires the Space Shuttle addon to view its repair during STS-41-C. See the table provided on that addon on when to view this particular shuttle mission in Celestia
• SolarMax can only be viewed in Celestia between 1984-Feb-14 until 1989-Dec-2

Astronaut George Nelson attempting to capture SolarMax satellite via MMU, 1984-Apr-6

A coronal mass ejection (CME) recorded by SolarMax, 1980-May-5

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