Tags: Canada, Canadian Space Agency, Telescope, ISRO, Near-Earth Asteroids
Publication: SpaceSafetyMagazine.com
Publication Date: 02/03/2013

NEOSSat being prepared for vibration testing at the David Florida Laboratory located in Ottawa, Ontario. Image credit: Janice Lang, DRDC

Canada’s newest space telescope is approaching its launch date aboard the Indian Space Research Organization’s (ISRO) Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). The NEOSSat (Near-Earth Object Space Surveillance Satellite), is also the world’s first space telescope designed specifically to detect and track asteroids and satellites.

NEOSSat will circle the globe every 100 minutes at an altitude of approximately 497 miles above Earth. At that altitude, the satellite will not be limited by day-night cycle allowing it to continuously scan a region near the Sun in search for asteroids that may someday pass near our planet. Additionally, NEOSSat will monitor operating and dead satellites as well as orbital debris as part of Defense Research and Development Canada’s (DRDC) High Earth Orbit Surveillance System (HEOSS) project. With the size of a suitcase and a weight of 143 pounds, it will be the first micro-satellite used for these purposes.

Unlike ground-based telescopes, the NEOSSat is not constrained by geographic location, time or weather in its quest to detect asteroids and satellites.

NEOSSat was funded both by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) and the DRDC. The spacecraft is scheduled for liftoff on February 11.

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