Kosmos 225

Summary

Kosmos 225 (Russian: Космос 225 meaning Cosmos 225), also known as DS-U1-Ya No.2, was a Soviet satellite which was launched in 1968 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme. It was a 400 kilograms (880 lb) spacecraft,[1] which was built by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau, and was used to investigate cosmic rays and flows of charged particles in the Earth's magnetosphere.[2]

Kosmos 225
Mission typeMagnetosphere
COSPAR ID1968-048A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.03279
Mission duration144 days
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft typeDS-U1-Ya
ManufacturerYuzhnoye
Launch mass400 kg[1]
Start of mission
Launch date11 June 1968, 21:29:54 GMT
RocketKosmos-2I 63SM
Launch siteKapustin Yar, Site 86/4
ContractorYuzhnoye
End of mission
Last contact29 June 1968
Decay date2 November 1968
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric
RegimeLow Earth
Perigee altitude255 km
Apogee altitude512 km
Inclination48.4°
Period92.2 minutes
Epoch11 June 1968
 

A Kosmos-2I 63SM carrier rocket was used to launch Kosmos 225 into low Earth orbit. The launch took place from Site 86/4 at Kapustin Yar.[3] The launch occurred at 21:29:54 GMT on 11 June 1968, and resulted in the successful insertion of the satellite into orbit.[4] Upon reaching orbit, the satellite was assigned its Kosmos designation, and received the International Designator 1968-048A.[5] The North American Air Defense Command assigned it the catalogue number 03279.

Kosmos 225 was the second of two DS-U1-Ya satellites to be launched, but the only one to successfully reach orbit; the DS-U1-Ya No.1 satellite having been lost in a launch failure, on 6 March 1968, due to a second stage malfunction, 216 seconds into its flight.[2][6] Kosmos 225 was operated in an orbit with a perigee of 255 kilometres (158 mi), an apogee of 512 kilometres (318 mi), an inclination of 48.4°, and an orbital period of 92.2 minutes.[7] It completed operations on 29 June 1968, before decaying from orbit and reentering the atmosphere on 2 November 1968.[7]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b "World Civil Satellites 1957-2006". Space Security Index. Archived from the original on 18 July 2011. Retrieved 24 December 2009.
  2. ^ a b Wade, Mark. "DS-U1-Ya". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 19 June 2010. Retrieved 24 December 2009.
  3. ^ McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 24 December 2009.
  4. ^ Wade, Mark. "Kosmos 2". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 18 June 2012. Retrieved 24 December 2009.
  5. ^ "Cosmos 225". NSSDC Master Catalog. US National Space Science Data Center. Retrieved 24 December 2009.
  6. ^ Krebs, Gunter. "DS-U1-Ya". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 24 December 2009.
  7. ^ a b McDowell, Jonathan. "Satellite Catalog". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 24 December 2009.