Experimentation in a satellite of a high sensitivity accelerometer

Abstract

The “Cactus” accelerometer and the devices necessary to calibrate it in orbit, developed at ONERA, make up the scientific payload of the “Castor” satellite, designed and launched by CNES on 17 May 1975 from the Guiana Space Centre, by a French Diamant Launcher. This note describes the instrument tested and gives its characteristics; it also presents the first results obtained during the recent experimentation in orbit (aerodynamic friction forces, Sun and Earth radiation pressure, etc.).