Having surpassed its expected lifespan by 12 years, on March 29, 2013, Canada's first Earth Observation satellite, RADARSAT-1, moved towards retirement due to a technical malfunction.
The Canadian Space Agency's (CSA) experts have put the spacecraft in "safe mode" - a semi-dormant state that conserves energy. The team will now investigate the anomaly, but has low expectations of a full recovery, as CSA stated.
RADARSAT-1 was launched in 1995 and was a great technological success for the Canadian space sector due to its long lifespan. RADARSAT-2 will continue to provide critical, high-quality data. Requests for RADARSAT-1 archieved imagery will continue to be processed, CSA stated on their website.
