Kosmos 321

Kosmos 321 (Russian: Космос 321 meaning Cosmos 321), also known as DS-U2-MG No.1, was a Soviet satellite which was launched in 1970 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme. It was a 365-kilogram (805 lb) spacecraft,[1] which was built by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau, and was used to investigate the magnetic poles of the Earth.[1]

Kosmos 321
Mission typeMagnetospheric
COSPAR ID1970-006A
SATCAT no.04308Edit this on Wikidata
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft typeDS-U2-MG
ManufacturerYuzhnoye
Launch mass365 kilograms (805 lb)[1]
Start of mission
Launch date20 January 1970, 20:19:59 (1970-01-20UTC20:19:59Z) UTC
RocketKosmos-2I 63SM
Launch sitePlesetsk 133/1
End of mission
Decay date23 March 1970 (1970-03-24)
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric
RegimeLow Earth
Perigee altitude259 kilometres (161 mi)
Apogee altitude417 kilometres (259 mi)
Inclination70.9 degrees
Period91.3 minutes
 

Launch

A Kosmos-2I 63SM carrier rocket was used to launch Kosmos 321 into low Earth orbit. The launch took place from Site 133/1 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome.[2] The launch occurred at 20:19:59 UTC on 20 January 1970, and resulted in the successful insertion of the satellite into orbit.[3] Upon reaching orbit, the satellite was assigned its Kosmos designation, and received the International Designator 1970-006A.[4] The North American Aerospace Defense Command assigned it the catalogue number 04308.

Orbit

Kosmos 321 was the first of two DS-U2-MG satellites to be launched, the other being Kosmos 356.[1][5] It was operated in an orbit with a perigee of 259 kilometres (161 mi), an apogee of 417 kilometres (259 mi), 70.9 degrees of inclination, and an orbital period of 91.3 minutes.[6] It completed operations on 13 March 1970,[7] before decaying from orbit and reentering the atmosphere on 23 March.[6]

References
  1. Wade, Mark. "DS-U2-MG". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 5 January 2009. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  2. McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  3. Wade, Mark. "Kosmos 2". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 18 June 2012. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  4. "Cosmos 321". NSSDC Master Catalog. US National Space Science Data Center. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  5. Krebs, Gunter. "DS-U2-MG". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  6. McDowell, Jonathan. "Satellite Catalog". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  7. "World Civil Satellites 1957-2006". Space Security Index. Archived from the original on 18 July 2011. Retrieved 26 December 2009.


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