Kosmos 378
Mission typeIonospheric
COSPAR ID1970-097A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.04713Edit this on Wikidata
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft typeDS-U2-IP
ManufacturerYuzhnoye
Launch mass710 kilograms (1,570 lb)[1]
Start of mission
Launch date17 November 1970, 18:20:01 (1970-11-17UTC18:20:01Z) UTC
RocketKosmos-3M
Launch sitePlesetsk 132/2
End of mission
Decay date17 August 1972 (1972-08-18)
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric
RegimeLow Earth
Perigee altitude233 kilometres (145 mi)
Apogee altitude1,697 kilometres (1,054 mi)
Inclination74 degrees
Period104.4 minutes
 

Kosmos 378 (Russian: Космос 378 meaning Cosmos 378), also known as DS-U2-IP No.1, was a Soviet satellite which was launched in 1970 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme. It was a 710-kilogram (1,570 lb) spacecraft,[1] which was built by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau, and was used to study the ionosphere.[1]

Launch

A Kosmos-3M 11K65M carrier rocket, serial number 47117-107, was used to launch Kosmos 378 into low Earth orbit.[2] It was launched at 18:20:01 UTC on 17 November 1970, from Site 132/2 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome.[2] The launch resulted in the successful insertion of the satellite into orbit.[3] Upon reaching orbit, the satellite was assigned its Kosmos designation, and received the International Designator 1970-097A.[4] The North American Aerospace Defense Command assigned it the catalogue number 04713.

Orbit

Kosmos 378 was the only DS-U2-IP satellite to be launched.[1][5] It was operated in an orbit with a perigee of 233 kilometres (145 mi), an apogee of 1,697 kilometres (1,054 mi), 74 degrees of inclination, and an orbital period of 104.4 minutes.[6] It completed operations on 13 September 1971,[7] before decaying from orbit and reentering the atmosphere on 17 August 1972.[6]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wade, Mark. "DS-U2-IP". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 8 January 2010. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  2. ^ a b McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  3. ^ Wade, Mark. "Kosmos 3". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 6 September 2008. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  4. ^ "Cosmos 378". NSSDC Master Catalog. US National Space Science Data Center. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  5. ^ Krebs, Gunter. "DS-U2-IP". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  6. ^ a b McDowell, Jonathan. "Satellite Catalog". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  7. ^ "World Civil Satellites 1957-2006". Space Security Index. Archived from the original on 18 July 2011. Retrieved 26 December 2009.


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