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Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics

Mission Operations

The SORCE spacecraft and instruments are operated by operations personnel at the Mission Operations Center (MOC) and Science Operations Center (SOC), located at LASP in Boulder, Colorado. The MOC contains all hardware and software necessary to conduct real-time spacecraft operational activities, including command and control of the satellite, mission planning, and assessment and maintenance of spacecraft and instrument health. The NASA Space/Ground Network, through primary ground antenna sites (ground stations) at Wallops Island, Virginia, USA and Santiago, Chile, provides the communication link to the satellite.
 

LASP Operations CenterLASP Operations Center

Operations personnel working in the LASP Mission Operations Center (MOC).


 

Normal operations consist of two contacts per day between the SORCE spacecraft and LASP. During real-time spacecraft contacts, LASP maintains direct communication with the spacecraft via a ground station, receiving and checking real-time telemetry data. Data that have been recorded on the spacecraft are retrieved during these contacts and relayed directly to LASP following each contact. The raw (Level 0) spacecraft telemetry data are immediately ingested into the SORCE project database at LASP, after which data processing and analysis commences. The nominal data volume received from the SORCE spacecraft is approximately 120 megabytes (1 billion bits) per day.