Author Topic: Capsule Ariane Technologique (CAT)  (Read 8448 times)

Offline koroljow

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Capsule Ariane Technologique (CAT)
« on: 05/07/2014 09:08 pm »
Hi, I'm searching for some background information on the CAT (Capsule Ariane Technologique) payloads which were part of the first Ariane-1 development flights. Who built the capsules? Did they share a common configuration? What about the Thesee and/or VID experiments related to CAT-04? Couldn't find anything about this experiment. Was it part of CAT or something stand alone?
« Last Edit: 05/13/2014 07:36 pm by Jester »
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Offline gwiz

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique
« Reply #1 on: 05/08/2014 02:14 pm »
CATs were built by Aeritalia, Thesee by youth science club GAREF-Paris, no information on VID, apart from it being a vibration damping payload mount.
« Last Edit: 05/08/2014 02:15 pm by gwiz »

Offline koroljow

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique
« Reply #2 on: 05/08/2014 08:46 pm »
Thank you very much. I've already seen this: http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garef. But I had some Problems to understand the connection between CAT04 and GAREF. The computer translation wasn't one of the best...
With your help I've found this: http://www.garef.com/aero/aero_satel.htm. Not much at all. But at least it's a beginning.
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Offline koroljow

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique
« Reply #3 on: 05/08/2014 08:57 pm »
And there is even a 3 part video (unfortunally only in French which I don't understand)
http://videotheque.cnes.fr/index.php?urlaction=doc&id_doc=6645
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Offline capcomespace

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique
« Reply #4 on: 05/09/2014 04:27 am »
The CAT (Capsule Ariane Technologique) capsule is a cylindrical module 1,2 meters in diameter, 1 600 kg (1385 kg are aluminum ballast on the top). CAT provides information on the atmosphere must support a satellite launched by Ariane. It is equipped with vibration  acceleration, acoustic noise and pollution sensors and telemetry transmitters (131.61 and 2206.5 MHz powered by batteries). Battery life limited to sixty hours the life of the CAT, time sufficient to allow the determination of the orbital parameters accurately.

http://www.capcomespace.net/dossiers/espace_europeen/ariane/1979-83/1979%20CAT%201.jpg
Didier Capdevila
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Offline koroljow

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique
« Reply #5 on: 05/09/2014 01:13 pm »
The CAT (Capsule Ariane Technologique) capsule is a cylindrical module 1,2 meters in diameter, 1 600 kg (1385 kg are aluminum ballast on the top).
Yes, I knew this before. But I think the weight (including ballast) is accurate only for CAT01? L03 was used to launch Meteosat-2 (>700 kg) and APPLE (>600 kg). L04 launched MARECS-A (>1000 kg). With an GTO performance of 1700 to 1850 kg for Ariane-1 there must have been less ballast (if any) on the flights following L01. But I couldn't verify this. And I was wondering if they only reduced the ballast or used different configurations of the capsule itself.
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Offline gwiz

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique
« Reply #6 on: 05/09/2014 02:26 pm »
I've the following masses:
CAT 1 1602 kg including 1385 kg ballast
CAT 2   334 kg including 91 kg ballast
CAT 3   217 kg
CAT 4   628 kg including 39 kg Thesee and 471 kg VID

I think my sources were press reports at the time, probably drawing on the ESA presskits.

Found diagram showing CAT 3 was shorter than CAT 1:
http://www.capcomespace.net/dossiers/espace_europeen/ariane/1979-83/1981%20L03%20CU.jpg

I've seen a picture of CAT 4, longer and with the cylindrical VID on top.
« Last Edit: 05/09/2014 04:30 pm by gwiz »

Offline Jester

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique
« Reply #7 on: 05/11/2014 08:35 pm »
CAT were made by Aeritalia with Laben and Selenia

CAT-1 = 217 kg
CAT-2 = 340 kg
CAT-3 = 140 kg
CAT-4 = 158 kg (includes Thesee)

VID = Amortisseurs de vibration made by Matra = 504 kg

« Last Edit: 04/20/2015 07:19 pm by Jester »

Offline koroljow

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique
« Reply #8 on: 05/13/2014 04:49 pm »
First of all: thank you all! Interesting to see that we have some new details, even to other geeks.
I had seen 217 kg for CAT-1 (and others) before. I think it's true for CAT-1. For CAT-3 I had 217 kg or 215 kg in my files. I took this as a strong hint that 217 kg is the structural weight of a CAT. But then came Jester with 140 kg for CAT-3. Could be true if gwiz is right with his assumption that CAT-3 was shorter than usual. Otherwise CAT-2 seems to have been heavier. Why? Maybe some kind of secondary payload? And CAT-4 - a lightweight version? So I'm still wondering how different the four CAT's have been. Maybe someone digs out some more information...
And now a final question. Please don't laugh at me. But I was always under the impression that the whole "thing" seen in the photo attached to Didier's post is the CAT. But as I understand it now CAT is only the lower cylindrical part. If so, what's the upper tapred cylinder with the two booms?
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Offline Jester

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique
« Reply #9 on: 05/13/2014 05:52 pm »
CAT = the cylindrical part
the part with the two boom is just classed as ballast to simulate the weight of a spacecraft.

See pic below
« Last Edit: 05/13/2014 05:53 pm by Jester »

Offline gwiz

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique
« Reply #10 on: 05/13/2014 06:42 pm »
My shorter/longer comments included the ballast and the VID in the length compared.  The lower cylinder, the actual CAT, seems similar in all of them.

CAT 2 carried ballast, subtracting it gives the basic CAT mass as 245 kg.

Perhaps CAT 4, possibly also CAT 3, was lighter because it carried less instrumentation, rather than for any change to the structure.
« Last Edit: 05/13/2014 06:48 pm by gwiz »

Offline Jester

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique
« Reply #11 on: 05/13/2014 07:30 pm »
Some more info, Laben and Selenia were also involved with CAT, below a better picture of CAT-1 during integration tests.

CAT basically provided a record of trajectory, orbital and environmental data

« Last Edit: 04/20/2015 06:53 pm by Jester »

Offline jcm

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique (CAT)
« Reply #12 on: 05/16/2014 09:42 pm »
CAT = the cylindrical part
the part with the two boom is just classed as ballast to simulate the weight of a spacecraft.

See pic below


But that ballast remained attached to the CAT in orbit, yes?  So if one's interest is 'what is the mass of the cataloged orbiting
object tagged with the name CAT', we need to include it.
-----------------------------

Jonathan McDowell
http://planet4589.org

Offline Jester

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique (CAT)
« Reply #13 on: 05/16/2014 10:20 pm »
CAT = the cylindrical part
the part with the two boom is just classed as ballast to simulate the weight of a spacecraft.

See pic below


But that ballast remained attached to the CAT in orbit, yes?  So if one's interest is 'what is the mass of the cataloged orbiting
object tagged with the name CAT', we need to include it.

I would guess yes, as I don't see a clampband or other separation means, i'll ask around to be sure, but to your remark, yes to total weight linked to the cataloged object would be CAT+ballast

Offline Jester

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique (CAT)
« Reply #14 on: 05/16/2016 02:17 pm »
Found some more information while in Kourou and talking to some people.
All images via A. Olivero

CAT project logo
« Last Edit: 05/16/2016 02:35 pm by Jester »

Offline Jester

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique (CAT)
« Reply #15 on: 05/16/2016 02:23 pm »
Better quality picture of CAT 01
« Last Edit: 05/16/2016 02:32 pm by Jester »

Offline Jester

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique (CAT)
« Reply #16 on: 05/16/2016 02:30 pm »
And a rare picture of the installation of the dummy mass (lest)
« Last Edit: 05/16/2016 02:31 pm by Jester »

Offline Jester

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique (CAT)
« Reply #17 on: 05/16/2016 02:56 pm »
Better look inside CAT
« Last Edit: 05/16/2016 02:56 pm by Jester »

Offline Jester

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Re: Capsule Ariane Technologique (CAT)
« Reply #18 on: 05/16/2016 03:01 pm »
Integration onto the Ariane 1 L01 upper stage and during encapsulation under the  fairing
« Last Edit: 05/17/2016 03:50 pm by Jester »

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