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KORONAS-FOTON

Koronas-Foton was a Russian solar-observation satellite launched in 2009. It studied high-energy processes on the Sun, including solar flares and associated X-ray and gamma-ray emissions.

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Object identity

NORAD ID
33504
COSPAR ID
2009-003A
Operator
Not listed
Country
Not listed
Launch date
Not listed

Immediate discovery

Why this satellite matters

Solar observations connect directly to space weather: energetic events on the Sun can alter the radiation and plasma environment through which satellites operate.

Understanding the mission

Science and engineering ideas

Solar observations connect directly to space weather: energetic events on the Sun can alter the radiation and plasma environment through which satellites operate.

Mission

Mission and purpose

The current public orbital catalog identifies this object, but verified mission-specific information may be limited. TransitSatellite will expand this page when authoritative information is available.

  • Solar observations connect directly to space weather: energetic events on the Sun can alter the radiation and plasma environment through which satellites operate.

Design

Engineering

Solar observations connect directly to space weather: energetic events on the Sun can alter the radiation and plasma environment through which satellites operate.

Real orbital values

The mathematics

The current two-line element set reports approximately 15.4753 revolutions per day. Dividing 1,440 minutes by that value gives an estimated orbital period of 93.1 minutes.

Period

93.1 min

Representative speed

27,558 km/h

Representative altitude

431 km

Inclination

82.43°

These are representative calculations derived from current orbital elements, not fixed physical specifications. Altitude and speed change around an elliptical orbit, and predictions change as new orbital elements are published.

Launch record

Launch and deployment

Koronas-Foton launched on 30 January 2009 aboard a Tsyklon-3 from Plesetsk Cosmodrome.

TransitSatellite does not estimate historical launch weather. Temperature, clouds, wind, holds, and scrub reasons will appear only when supported by traceable historical sources.

Orbit

LEO orbit explained

Low Earth orbit is the region closest to Earth used by most crewed spacecraft, many science missions, Earth-observation satellites, and large constellations. Objects move quickly and commonly complete an orbit in roughly 90 to 130 minutes.

LEO can provide detailed Earth views, lower communications delay, and easier access than higher orbits, but it covers less area per spacecraft and is more affected by atmospheric drag.

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Learning

Questions to explore

  • What can an orbit tell us before the mission is fully identified?
  • Why are stable catalog identifiers important?

Evidence

Sources and data notes

Current identity and orbital elements come from CelesTrak’s public GP data. Calculated orbit values are derived from the current TLE and may change after catalog updates. Mission-history claims are added separately and require authoritative sources.

Catalog updated

Sep 17, 2026, 7:50 AM UTC

Story review

1970-01-01T00:00:00.000Z