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The satellite was successfully launched on <STRONG>February 20, 1993</STRONG>. The mission operated successfully for over 7 years until attitude control was lost on <STRONG>July 14, 2000</STRONG> during a geomagnetic storm, after which no scientific observations were performed. ASCA reentered the atmosphere on <STRONG>March 2, 2001</STRONG> after more than 8 years in orbit. </P> <p>The U.S. ASCA Guest Observer Facility (GOF), located at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, was part of the then Office of General Investigator Programs <A HREF="http://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/ogip/">(OGIP)</A> (now called the HEASARC Office) in the Astrophysics Science Division <A HREF="http://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/">(ASD)</a>.</p> The primary responsibility of the U.S. ASCA GOF was to enable U.S. astronomers to make the best use of the ASCA mission, in close collaboration with the Japanese ASCA team. <p> </td><td valign="top" width=250> <IMG alt="ASCA Logo" SRC="/Images/asca/asca_medium.jpg" WIDTH=250 HEIGHT=207 alt="The ASCA Satellite"><p>  <table bgcolor="CCCCCC" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0> <tr><td> <table align=middle cellpadding=5 width=250 cellspacing=1> <tr><td valign="top" bgcolor="CCCCCC"> <b>Latest News</b> </td></tr><tr><td bgcolor="ffffff"> <div class="news"> <LI> <A HREF="/docs/asca/reentry.html">ASCA Reentry</A>: ASCA re-entered the Earth's atmosphere on March 2, 2001<P> <a href="/docs/asca/whatsnew.html#older"> More News</a> </div> </td></tr> </table> </td></tr> </table>  <br> <p>This page is intended for members of the scientific community. For members of the general public, or those interested in general astronomy/astrophysics information please go to our <a href="/docs/outreach.html">Education and Public Outreach</a> site or the <a href="/docs/asca/outreach/asca_asca.html">ASCA results for the Public</a> section.</p> </td></tr> </table> <hr> If you have any questions concerning <a href="/docs/asca/asca2.html"> ASCA</a>, visit our <a href="/cgi-bin/Feedback">Feedback form</a>.<p> <span class=footer>This file was last modified on Tuesday, 26-Oct-2021 15:56:42 EDT</span> </td></tr> <tr><td bgcolor="cccccc" colspan=3> <table cellpadding=5><tr><td> <span class="footer"> <p align="center">  <a href="http://science.nasa.gov/astrophysics/">NASA Astrophysics</a> </p> <LI><a href="/docs/faq.html"> FAQ/Comments/Feedback</a> <LI><a href="/docs/outreach.html"> Education Resources</a> <LI><a href="http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/main.html"> Download Adobe Acrobat</a> </span> </td> <td valign=top> <span class="footer"> A service of the <A HREF="http://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/"> Astrophysics Science Division (ASD)</A> at <A HREF="http://www.nasa.gov/">NASA/</A> <A HREF="http://www.nasa.gov/goddard">GSFC</A><br> <p> ASCA Project Scientist: <A HREF="/docs/bios/white.html"> Dr. Nicholas E. 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