Arianespace launches SPOT 4 earth observation satellite

17 Jun 2002

Arianespace successfully launched the SPOT 4 Earth observation satellite for Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales March 23. The provisional parameters at third stage injection into sun-synchronous orbit area perigee of 790 km for a target of 794 km, an apogee of 811.7 km for a target of 813 km, and an inclination of 98.73 degrees for a target of 98.74 degrees. SPOT 4's payload will enable daily observation of all land masses with 1 km resolution. The system also includes two high-resolution visible and infrared (HRVIR) instruments.