EO·Atlas
missions
Aura
Aura is a NASA Earth observation mission for atmospheric chemistry and air-quality measurements. The spacecraft launched on 2004-07-15 and remains in extended operation as of 2026-06-14.[1][2] Aura flies in a sun-synchronous near-polar orbit at about 705 km altitude, 98.2 degree inclination, and a 13:45 ascending equator crossing, with a 16-day repeat cycle.[3][4]
The mission carries HIRDLS, MLS, OMI, and TES for trace-gas and atmospheric observations.[2][4] It is designed for systematic atmospheric monitoring rather than commercial tasking, with an archive depth of about 21 years and worldwide air-quality and chemistry coverage in the D1 mission record.[2]
Full specification
All fields
| current status | extended |
| operator | National Aeronautics and Space Administration |
| launch vehicle | ula-delta-ii |
| Launched | 2004-07-15 |
| orbit type | Sun-synchronous near-polar orbit, 705 km altitude, 98.2 degree inclination, approximately 13:45 ascending equator crossing |
| revisit days | 16 |
| tasking supported | false |
| archive depth years | 21 |
| current geographic priority | Global atmospheric chemistry and air-quality observations |
| Last updated | 2026-06-14 |
| claim status | agency-sourced |
Where this fits, supply chain
Compositional position
Sources
- [1]Aura mission overview, NASA Scienceagency doc2026-06-14
- [2]About Aura, NASA Scienceagency doc2026-06-14
- [3]Aura platform, NASA Earthdataagency doc2026-06-14
- [4]Satellite: Aura, WMO OSCARcommunity2026-06-14