The experimental SKIF-D spacecraft was launched on December 22, 2022 form Vostochny Cosmodrome. Russia’s first in the polar medium circular orbit with an altitude of 8’070 km, it was designed for 3 years lifetime.
In the course of its mission, SKIF-D successfully tackled all tasks posed before it. Those included groundbreaking experiments for the study of the yet uncharted orbit and the impact of its radiation environment on the satellite. The experiments served to validate the radiation model proposed by engineers.
SKIF-D also gathered statistics on the operation of solar array photocells, providing valuable data for future satellites’ electric power system design.
In the three years of its mission, over 4 500 control sessions and over 200 communication sessions were held with SKIF-D, amounting to approximately 70 Mb of TMTC data being received and transmitted.
In 2023 and 2024, SKIF-D facilitated regular video calls between users situated in different regions of the country, thus proving that high quality video conference communication is achievable through an experimental satellite system operating in an orbit previously not exploited.
