6 Climate Satellites Reach Orbit - Funded Mostly By Taiwan, Part By US

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VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. - Six weather satellites successfully reached orbit and were ready to begin their five-year mission to track hurricanes, monitor climate change and study space weather, it was announced Saturday.

"Ground stations have received signals from all six satellites," according to an update on the Web site for the project's manager, University Corporation for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colo.

The satellites were launched on a rocket booster Friday evening from this Central Coast base. They were placed into orbit about 500 miles above Earth, where they separated to form a chain. The satellites will take about 2,500 daily measurements by using global positioning receivers to track radio signals passing through the atmosphere, scientists said.

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The $100-million mission was funded by Taiwan and several U.S. agencies including the National Science Foundation.

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