| Major contractors | Yuzhnoye |
|---|---|
| Bus | DS-P1-I |
| Mission type | ABM Radar target |
| Launch date | 20 September 1968 14:39:59 GMT |
| Carrier rocket | Kosmos-2I 63SM |
| Launch site | Plesetsk Site 133/1 |
| Orbital decay | 13 November 1968 |
| COSPAR ID | 1968-079A |
| Mass | 325 kilograms (720 lb) |
| Orbital elements | |
| Regime | Low Earth |
| Inclination | 71° |
| Apoapsis | 406 kilometres (252 mi) |
| Periapsis | 272 kilometres (169 mi) |
| Orbital period | 91.3 minutes |
Kosmos 242 (Russian: Космос 242 meaning Cosmos 242), also known as DS-P1-I #4 was a satellite which was used as a radar target for anti-ballistic missile tests. It was launched by the Soviet Union in 1968 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme.[1]
It was launched aboard a Kosmos-2I 63SM rocket,[2] from Site 133/1 at Plesetsk. The launch occurred at 14:39:59 GMT on 20 September 1968.[3]
Kosmos 242 was placed into a low Earth orbit with a perigee of 272 kilometres (169 mi), an apogee of 406 kilometres (252 mi), 71 degrees of inclination, and an orbital period of 91.3 minutes.[1] It decayed from orbit on 13 November 1968.[4]
Kosmos 242 was the fourth of nineteen DS-P1-I satellites to be launched.[1] Of these, all reached orbit successfully except the seventh.[5]