| Major contractors | Yuzhnoye |
|---|---|
| Bus | DS-P1-Yu |
| Mission type | ABM radar target |
| Launch date | 5 March 1969 13:04:55 GMT |
| Carrier rocket | Kosmos-2I 63SM |
| Launch site | Kapustin Yar Site 86/4 |
| Orbital decay | 9 May 1970 |
| COSPAR ID | 1969-020A |
| Mass | 250 kilograms (550 lb) |
| Orbital elements | |
| Regime | Low Earth |
| Inclination | 48.4° |
| Apoapsis | 2,063 kilometres (1,282 mi) |
| Periapsis | 212 kilometres (132 mi) |
| Orbital period | 108 minutes |
Kosmos 268 (Russian: Космос 268 meaning Cosmos 268), known before launch as DS-P1-Yu #18, was a Soviet satellite which was used as a radar calibration target for tests of anti-ballistic missiles. It was a 250-kilogram (550 lb) spacecraft, which was built by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau, and launched in 1969 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme.[1]
Kosmos 268 was launched from Site 86/4 at Kapustin Yar,[2] atop a Kosmos-2I 63SM carrier rocket. The launch occurred on 5 March 1969 at 13:04:55 GMT, and resulted in Kosmos 268's successful deployment into low Earth orbit.[3] Upon reaching orbit, it was assigned its Kosmos designation, and received the International Designator 1969-020A.
Kosmos 268 was operated in an orbit with a perigee of 212 kilometres (132 mi), an apogee of 2,063 kilometres (1,282 mi), 48.4 degrees of inclination, and an orbital period of 108 minutes.[1][4] It remained in orbit until it decayed and reentered the atmosphere on 9 May 1970.[4] It was the nineteenth of seventy nine DS-P1-Yu satellites to be launched,[1] and the eighteenth of seventy two to successfully reach orbit.[5]