Kosmos 96
.png) Artistic representation of the space probe falling in Kecksburg, Pennsylvania. | |
| Mission type | Venus flyby[1] |
|---|---|
| Operator | OKB-1 |
| COSPAR ID | 1965-094A |
| SATCAT no. | 1742 |
| Mission duration | Launch failure |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft type | 3MV-4 |
| Manufacturer | OKB-1 |
| Launch mass | 6,510 kilograms (14,350 lb) |
| Dry mass | 960 kilograms (2,120 lb) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 23 November 1965, 03:21 UTC[2] |
| Rocket | Molniya 8K78 |
| Launch site | Baikonur 31/6 |
| End of mission | |
| Decay date | 9 December 1965 |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Low Earth |
| Semi-major axis | 6,606.5 kilometres (4,105.1 mi) |
| Eccentricity | 0.00401 |
| Perigee | 209 kilometres (130 mi)[3] |
| Apogee | 262 kilometres (163 mi)[3] |
| Inclination | 51.9 degrees[3] |
| Period | 89.2 minutes[3] |
Kosmos 96 (Russian: Космос 96 meaning Cosmos 96), or 3MV-4 No.6, was a Soviet spacecraft intended to explore Venus. A 3MV-4 spacecraft launched as part of the Venera programme, Kosmos 96 was to have made a flyby of Venus, however due to a launch failure it did not depart low Earth orbit.
The 3MV-4 No.6 spacecraft was originally built for a mission to Mars, with launch scheduled for late 1964. After it was not launched by the end of its launch window, the spacecraft was repurposed, along with two other spacecraft which were launched as Venera 2 and Venera 3, to explore Venus.[4]
A Molniya carrier rocket was used to launch 3MV-4 No.6. The launch occurred from Site 31/6 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 03:21 UTC on 23 November 1965.[2] Late in third stage flight, a fuel line ruptured, causing one of the engine's combustion chambers to explode. The rocket tumbled out of control, and as a result the fourth stage, a Blok-L, failed to ignite.[4] The spacecraft was deployed into a low Earth orbit with a perigee of 209 kilometres (130 mi), an apogee of 261 kilometres (162 mi), and 51.9 degrees of inclination to the equator. The spacecraft was named Kosmos 96, part of a series typically used for military and experimental satellites in order to cover up the failure. Had it departed Earth's orbit, it would have received the next designation in the Venera series, at the time Venera 4.
Kosmos 96 was destroyed when it reentered the Earth's atmosphere on 9 December 1965.[3] Its reentry has been suggested as a possible explanation of UFO sightings over the United States and Canada, centred on Kecksburg, Pennsylvania; however analysis found the spacecraft probably reentered several hours before the sightings.[5]
See also
References
- ↑ Krebs, Gunter. "Interplanetary Probes". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 11 April 2013.
- 1 2 McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 11 April 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 5 McDowell, Jonathan. "Satellite Catalog". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 11 April 2013.
- 1 2 Siddiqi, Asif A. (2002). "1965". Deep Space Chronicle: A Chronology of Deep Space and Planetary Probes 1958-2000 (PDF). Monographs in Aerospace History, No. 24. NASA History Office. pp. 47–52.
- ↑ "Cosmos 96". U.S. National Space Science Data Center. Retrieved 11 April 2013.