The Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS), a NASA Small Explorer mission, was successfully launched on June 27, 2013. The mission consists of a solar observing telescope and spectrograph supported by a small spacecraft bus along with ground data and mission operations systems. The observatory weighs 183kg, consumes less than 365W at peak power, and transmits 45 Gbits per day. IRIS operates in a low earth, sun-synchronous orbit and provides continuous observations of the solar atmosphere to help discover how it is energized. This paper will describe the development, successful operation, and on orbit performance of the IRIS observatory with an emphasis on aspects of the program that led to its low cost implementation.
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