Kosmos 426
Mission typeMagnetospheric
COSPAR ID1971-052A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.05281Edit this on Wikidata
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft typeDS-U2-K
ManufacturerYuzhnoye
Launch mass680 kilograms (1,500 lb)[1]
Start of mission
Launch date4 June 1971, 18:10:00 (1971-06-04UTC18:10Z) UTC
RocketKosmos-3M
Launch sitePlesetsk 132/2
End of mission
Decay date11 May 2002 (2002-05-12)
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric
RegimeLow Earth
Perigee altitude388 kilometres (241 mi)
Apogee altitude1,993 kilometres (1,238 mi)
Inclination74 degrees
Period109.2 minutes
 

Kosmos 426 (Russian: Космос 426 meaning Cosmos 426), also known as DS-U2-K No.1, was a Soviet satellite which was launched in 1971 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme. It was a 680-kilogram (1,500 lb) spacecraft,[1] which was built by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau, and was used to study charged particles and radiation in the Earth's magnetosphere.[1]

Launch

A Kosmos-3M carrier rocket, with serial number 65014-101, was used to launch Kosmos 426 into low Earth orbit.[2] The launch took place from Site 132/2 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome.[2] The launch occurred at 18:10:00 UTC on 4 June 1971, and resulted in the successful insertion of the satellite into orbit.[3]

Orbit

Upon reaching orbit, the satellite was assigned its Kosmos designation, and received the International Designator 1971-052A.[4] The North American Aerospace Defense Command assigned it the catalogue number 05281.

Kosmos 426 was the only DS-U2-K satellite to be launched.[1][5] It was operated in an orbit with a perigee of 388 kilometres (241 mi), an apogee of 1,993 kilometres (1,238 mi), 74 degrees of inclination, and an orbital period of 109.2 minutes.[6] It was operated until 12 January 1972,[7] and subsequently remained in orbit until it decayed and reentered the atmosphere on 11 May 2002.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wade, Mark. "DS-U2-K". 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 426". NSSDC Master Catalog. US National Space Science Data Center. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  5. ^ Krebs, Gunter. "DS-U2-K". Gunter's Space Page. Archived from the original on 29 August 2012. 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.


Categories