Vanguard 3 [NASA]
Vanguard 3 was launched by a modified Vanguard rocket from the Eastern Test Range into a geocentric orbit. The objectives of the flight were to measure the earth's magnetic field, the solar X-ray radiation and its effects on the earth's atmosphere, and the near-earth micrometeoroid environment. Instrumentation included a proton magnetometer, X-ray ionization chambers, and various micrometeoroid detectors. The spacecraft was a 50.8-cm-diameter magnesium sphere. The magnetometer was housed in a glass fiber phenolic resin conical tube attached to the sphere. Data transmission stopped on 11 December 1959, after 84 days of operation. The data obtained provided a comprehensive survey of the earth's magnetic field over the area covered, defined the lower edge of the Van Allen radiation belt, and provided a count of micrometeoroid impacts. Vanguard 3 has an expected orbital lifetime of 300 yr.
Nation: | USA |
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Type / Application: | Science |
Operator: | NASA |
Contractors: | Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) |
Equipment: | |
Configuration: | |
Propulsion: | |
Power: | Batteries |
Lifetime: | 84 days |
Mass: | 23 kg |
Orbit: | 512 km × 3744 km, 33.3° |
Satellite | COSPAR | Date | LS | Launch Vehicle | Remarks | |
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Vanguard 3 (Magne-Ray Satellite) | 1959 η | 18.09.1959 | CC LC-18A | P | Vanguard (mod) |