| Mission type | ABM radar target |
|---|---|
| COSPAR ID | 1972-033A |
| SATCAT no. | 06006 |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft type | DS-P1-Yu |
| Manufacturer | Yuzhnoye |
| Launch mass | 325 kilograms (717 lb) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 21 April 1972, 11:59:59 UTC |
| Rocket | Kosmos-2I 63SM |
| Launch site | Plesetsk 133/1 |
| End of mission | |
| Decay date | 24 September 1972 |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Low Earth |
| Perigee altitude | 262 kilometres (163 mi) |
| Apogee altitude | 468 kilometres (291 mi) |
| Inclination | 70.9 degrees |
| Period | 91.8 minutes |
Kosmos 487 (Russian: Космос 487 meaning Cosmos 487), known before launch as DS-P1-Yu No.57, was a Soviet satellite which was launched in 1972 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme. It was a 325-kilogram (717 lb) spacecraft, which was built by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau, and was used as a radar calibration target for anti-ballistic missile tests.[1]
Kosmos 487 was successfully launched into low Earth orbit at 11:59:59 UTC on 21 April 1972.[2] The launch took place from Site 133/1 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome,[3] and used a Kosmos-2I 63SM carrier rocket. Upon reaching orbit, the satellite was assigned its Kosmos designation, and received the International Designator 1972-033A.[4] The North American Aerospace Defense Command assigned it the catalogue number 06006.
Kosmos 487 was the fifty-third of seventy nine DS-P1-Yu satellites to be launched,[1] and the forty-eighth of seventy two to successfully reach orbit.[5] It was operated in an orbit with a perigee of 262 kilometres (163 mi), an apogee of 468 kilometres (291 mi), 70.9 degrees of inclination, and an orbital period of 91.8 minutes.[1][6] It remained in orbit until it decayed and reentered the atmosphere on 24 September 1972.[6]
