 | |
| Mission type | Optical reconnaissance |
|---|---|
| Operator | US Air Force / NRO |
| Harvard designation | 1960 DEL |
| COSPAR ID | 1960-004A |
| SATCAT no. | S00032 |
| Mission duration | 1 day |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft type | CORONA KH-1 |
| Bus | Agena-A |
| Manufacturer | Lockheed |
| Launch mass | 786 kilograms (1,733 lb) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 15 Apr 1960 20:30:37 GMT |
| Rocket | Thor DM-21 Agena-A (Thor 234) |
| Launch site | Vandenberg LC 75-3-5 |
| End of mission | |
| Decay date | 26 Apr |
| Landing date | 16 Apr (SRV) |
| Landing site | Pacific Ocean (SRV) |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Low Earth |
| Eccentricity | 0.03098 |
| Perigee altitude | 170 kilometres (110 mi) |
| Apogee altitude | 589 kilometres (366 mi) |
| Inclination | 80.100° |
| Period | 92.16 minutes |
| Epoch | 15 Apr 1960 20:24:00 |
Discoverer 11, also known as Corona 9008,[1]: 236 was an American optical reconnaissance satellite launched on 15 Apr 1960 at 20:30:37 GMT. The eighth of ten operational flights of the Corona KH-1 spy satellite series, it successfully employed the first space-worthy camera film; however, Discoverer's film return capsule was lost during reentry on 16 Apr when the satellite's spin motors exploded.
- ^ Day, Dwayne A.; Logsdon, John M.; Latell, Brian (1998). Eye in the Sky: The Story of the Corona Spy Satellites. Washington and London: Smithsonian Institution Press. ISBN 1-56098-830-4. OCLC 36783934.