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Orbiting Carbon Observatory 3 (ISS-OCO-3)

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Status: Current, Extended Mission
Mission Category: Earth System Science Pathfinder Program, Other
Launch Date: May 4, 2019

The third Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO-3) is a space instrument designed to investigate important questions about the distribution of carbon dioxide on Earth as it relates to growing urban populations and changing patterns of fossil fuel combustion. NASA has developed and assembled the instrument using spare materials from the successful development and launch of the Orbiting Carbon Observatory 2 in 2014 and hosts the instrument on the Japanese Experiment Module- Exposed Facility (JEM-EF) onboard the International Space Station.

Key Orbiting Carbon Observatory 3 Facts

Mission/Portal Page: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/orbiting-carbon-observatory-3-oco-3/
Altitude:Distance from sea level. 400km
Inclination: 51.6°
Origination: NASA
Instruments: Grating spectrometers