The CHAMP satellite was launched with a Russian COSMOS launch vehicle on July 15, 2000 into an almost circular, near polar (inclination: 87°) orbit with an initial altitude of 454 km. The design lifetime of the satellite system is 5 years. The 87 degree inclination is the maximum inclination which can be served from the Plesetsk cosmodrome. An initial altitude of about 454 km is chosen (a) to guarantee a multi-year mission duration even under severe solar activity conditions, (b) to account for the requirement imposed by the atmosphere/ionosphere application to look from the outside through the different atmospheric layers, i.e., an even higher altitude would be the optimum in this regard, and (c) because 454 km is the adequate altitude to observe the Earth's magnetic main field. From the gravity field's point of view an even lower initial altitude would be desirable.