| Mission type | Earth observation |
|---|---|
| Operator | Bolivarian Agency for Space Activities |
| COSPAR ID | 2017-060A[1] |
| SATCATno. | 42954 |
| Mission duration | 5 years |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Bus | CAST 2000 |
| Manufacturer | China Great Wall Industry Corporation China Academy of Space Technology |
| Launch mass | 975 kilograms (2,150 lb) at launch |
| Power | @1700Kw |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 9 October 2017, 04:12 (2017-10-09UTC04:12Z) UTC |
| Rocket | Chang Zheng 2D |
| Launch site | JiuquanLA-4/SLS-2 |
| Contractor | SAS |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | low Earth orbit[1] |
| Eccentricity | 0.0023[1] |
| Perigee altitude | 634.6 kilometres (394.3 mi)[1] |
| Apogee altitude | 663.7 kilometres (412.4 mi)[1] |
| Inclination | 98.00[1] |
| Period | 97.6[1] |
| Epoch | 17350.82709734 |
VRSS-2 (Venezuelan Remote Sensing Satellite-2), also known as (Satellite)Antonio José de Sucre, is the secondVenezuelanremote sensing satellite, and the third Venezuelan satellite afterVRSS-1. It will be used to study Venezuelan territory and support planning, agriculture and disaster recovery. It was built and launched by theChinese and has been named after Venezuelan revolutionaryAntonio José de Sucre.
The satellite was built after a contract between Venezuela and China was signed inCaracas on 5 Oct 2014,[2] and follows from their previous collaboration on VRSS-1 Miranda Remote Sensing Satellite. The contract, worth $170 millionUSD, The main contractor isChina Great Wall Industry Corporation and the satellite is based on the CAST 2000 bus developed by theChina Academy of Space Technology.
The satellite contains two different cameras, High Resolution Camera (HRC) and Infrared Camera (IRC). The highest resolution band 0.98 metres (3 ft 3 in) GSD inpanchromatic, and 4 metres (13 ft) GSD inmultispectral. The Infrared cameras have a resolution of (Long Wave) 60 metres (200 ft) and (Short Wave) 30 metres (98 ft) GSD, totaling 10 spectral bands.
The satellite passes over Venezuela three or four times every 24 hours, covering the same area in 101 days atNadir. Is operated from the Base Aeroespacial Capitán Manuel Ríos inEl Sombrero,Guárico state by Venezuela'sBolivarian Agency for Space Activities, design life span (5 years)
The satellite was launched 9 October 2017 at 4:12 UTC fromJiuquan Launch Centre in P.R China by aLong March 2D rocket, into a Sun Synchronous DescendingOrbital node at 10:30amlow Earth orbit. It was given theinternational designator 2017-060A andUnited States Space CommandSatellite Catalog Number 42954.[3]
