![](\"http:\/\/www.esa.int\/var\/esa\/storage\/images\/esa_multimedia\/images\/2017\/05\/exosat_control\/16953892-1-eng-GB\/Exosat_control_small.jpg\")
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\nExosat dedicated control room in Darmstadt 1983<\/b>\n<\/p>\n
\nThirty-four years ago, on 26 May 1983, ESA\u2019s Exosat satellite was launched by a Thor-Delta rocket from Vandenburg Airforce Base, California, USA, and was taken over by mission controllers at ESOC, the European Space Operations Centre, Darmstadt, Germany.\n<\/p>\n
\nDesigned to observe and detect high-energy sources, Exosat was the first ESA mission to study the Universe at X-ray wavelengths, and one of the first uncrewed satellites to feature an on-board computer.\n<\/p>\n
\nBy placing the satellite in an elliptical orbit, mission teams were able to operate the instruments for 76 hours of each revolution.\n<\/p>\n
\nIn its three-year life, the mission observed a wide variety of objects, including active galactic nuclei, X-ray binary systems, supernova remnants and clusters of galaxies.\n<\/p>\n
\nThe results that Exosat obtained were very useful to scientists, and led to several new discoveries. The most important of these was probably the discovery of quasi-periodic oscillations in low-mass X-ray binary stars and X-ray pulsars, a phenomenon unknown before Exosat. All the data that Exosat retrieved are still available for study, and are still leading to new discoveries.\n<\/p>\n
\nIn 2017, ESOC is celebrating its 50th anniversary.\n<\/p>\n
\nMore information<\/b>\n<\/p>\n
Exosat<\/a> \nExosat dedicated control room in Darmstadt 1983<\/b>\n<\/p>\n \nThirty-four years ago, on 26 May 1983, ESA’s Exosat satellite was launched by a Thor-Delta rocket from Vandenburg Airforce Base, California, USA, and was taken over by mission controllers at ESOC, the European Space Operations Centre, Darmstadt, Germany.\n<\/p>\n \nDesigned to observe and detect high-energy sources, Exosat was the first ESA mission to study the Universe at X-ray wavelengths, and one of the first uncrewed satellites to feature an on-board computer.\n<\/p>\n \nBy placing the satellite in an elliptical orbit, mission teams were able to operate the instruments for 76 hours of each revolution.\n<\/p>\n \nIn its three-year life, the mission observed a wide variety of objects, including active galactic nuclei, X-ray binary systems, supernova remnants and clusters of galaxies.\n<\/p>\n \nThe results that Exosat obtained were very useful to scientists, and led to several new discoveries. The most important of these was probably the discovery of quasi-periodic oscillations in low-mass X-ray binary stars and X-ray pulsars, a phenomenon unknown before Exosat. All the data that Exosat retrieved are still available for study, and are still leading to new discoveries.\n<\/p>\n \nIn 2017, ESOC is celebrating its 50th anniversary.\n<\/p>\n \nMore information<\/b>\n<\/p>\n Exosat<\/a>
\nESOC<\/a>
#ESOC50<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n
ESOC<\/a>
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