Kosmos 608
Mission typeABM radar target
COSPAR ID1973-091A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.06941Edit this on Wikidata
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft typeDS-P1-Yu
ManufacturerYuzhnoye
Launch mass400 kilograms (880 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date20 November 1973, 12:29:58 (1973-11-20UTC12:29:58Z) UTC
RocketKosmos-2I 63SM
Launch sitePlesetsk 133/1
End of mission
Decay date10 July 1974 (1974-07-11)
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric
RegimeLow Earth
Perigee altitude265 kilometres (165 mi)
Apogee altitude486 kilometres (302 mi)
Inclination70.9 degrees
Period92.1 minutes
 

Kosmos 608 (Russian: Космос 608 meaning Cosmos 608), known before launch as DS-P1-Yu No.69, was a Soviet satellite which was launched in 1973 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme. It was a 400-kilogram (880 lb) spacecraft, which was built by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau, and was used as a radar calibration target for anti-ballistic missile tests.[1]

Launch

Kosmos 608 was successfully launched into low Earth orbit at 12:29:58 UTC on 20 November 1973.[2] The launch took place from Site 133/1 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome,[3] and used a Kosmos-2I 63SM carrier rocket.

Orbit

Upon reaching orbit, the satellite was assigned its Kosmos designation, and received the International Designator 1973-091A.[4] The North American Aerospace Defense Command assigned it the catalogue number 06941.

Kosmos 608 was the sixty-sixth of seventy nine DS-P1-Yu satellites to be launched,[1] and the sixtieth of seventy two to successfully reach orbit.[5] It was operated in an orbit with a perigee of 265 kilometres (165 mi), an apogee of 486 kilometres (302 mi), 70.9 degrees of inclination, and an orbital period of 92.1 minutes.[6] It remained in orbit until it decayed and reentered the atmosphere on 10 July 1974.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Wade, Mark. "DS-P1-Yu". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 2 June 2012. Retrieved 1 September 2009.
  2. ^ Wade, Mark. "Kosmos 2". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 18 June 2012. Retrieved 1 September 2009.
  3. ^ McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 1 September 2009.
  4. ^ "Cosmos 608". NSSDC Master Catalog. US National Space Science Data Center. Retrieved 1 September 2009.
  5. ^ Krebs, Gunter. "DS-P1-Yu (11F618)". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 1 September 2009.
  6. ^ a b McDowell, Jonathan. "Satellite Catalog". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 1 September 2009.


Categories