Discoverer 37
Mission type | Optical reconnaissance |
---|---|
Operator | US Air Force/NRO |
Mission duration | Failed to orbit |
Spacecraft properties | |
Spacecraft type | KH-3 Corona‴ |
Bus | Agena-B |
Manufacturer | Lockheed |
Launch mass | 1,150 kilograms (2,540 lb) |
Start of mission | |
Launch date | 13 January 1962, 21:41 | UTC
Rocket | Thor DM-21 Agena-B 327 |
Launch site | Vandenberg LC-75-3-4 |
Orbital parameters | |
Reference system | Geocentric |
Regime | Low Earth |
Epoch | Planned |
Discoverer 37, also known as Corona 9030, was an American optical reconnaissance satellite which was lost in a launch failure in 1962. It was the last KH-3 Corona satellite, which was based on an Agena-B rocket.[1]
The launch of Discoverer 37 occurred at 21:41 UTC on 13 January 1962. A Thor DM-21 Agena-B rocket was used, flying from Launch Complex 75-3-4 at the Vandenberg Air Force Base;[2] however, it failed to achieve orbit.[3]
Discoverer 37 was intended to be operated in a low Earth orbit. It had a mass of 1,150 kilograms (2,540 lb),[4] and was equipped with a panoramic camera with a focal length of 61 centimetres (24 in), which had a maximum resolution of 7.6 metres (25 ft).[5] Images were to have been recorded onto 70-millimeter (2.8 in) film, and returned in a Satellite Recovery Vehicle at the end of the mission. The Satellite Recovery Vehicle which was to have been used by Discoverer 37 was SRV-571.[4]
References
[edit]- ^ Krebs, Gunter. "KH-3 Corona". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ^ McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ^ Lindborg, Christina; Pike, John (9 September 2000). "KH-3 Corona". Federation of American Scientists. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ^ a b Wade, Mark. "KH-3". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 18 September 2010. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ^ "Corona". Mission and Spacecraft Library. NASA. Archived from the original on 3 October 2007. Retrieved 30 June 2010.