 | |
| Mission type | Optical reconnaissance |
|---|---|
| Operator | US Air Force / NRO |
| Harvard designation | 1959 GAM |
| COSPAR ID | 1959-003A |
| SATCAT no. | S00014 |
| Mission duration | 1 day |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft type | CORONA Test Vehicle |
| Bus | Agena-A |
| Manufacturer | Lockheed |
| Launch mass | 784 kilograms (1,728 lb) after orbital insertion |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 13 April 1959 21:18:39 GMT |
| Rocket | Thor DM-21 Agena-A (Thor 170) |
| Launch site | Vandenberg LC 75-3-4 |
| End of mission | |
| Last contact | 14 April 1959 |
| Decay date | 26 April 1959 |
| Landing date | 13 April 1959 (SRV) |
| Landing site | Over Spitzbergen (SRV) |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Low Earth |
| Eccentricity | 0.00801 |
| Perigee altitude | 239 kilometers (149 mi) |
| Apogee altitude | 346 kilometers (215 mi) |
| Inclination | 89.9° |
| Period | 90.40 minutes |
| Epoch | 13 April 1959 21:21:00 |
Discoverer 2 was an American optical reconnaissance satellite launched on 13 April 1959 at 21:18:39 GMT, the second of three test flights of the Corona KH-1 spy satellite series. Discoverer 2 was the first satellite to be stabilized in orbit in all three axes and to be maneuvered on command from the earth. Though it carried no film and thus conducted no surveillance, Discoverer 2 was both the first satellite equipped with a reentry capsule and the first to return a payload from orbit. A timing error caused the reentry capsule to land near the island of Spitzbergen, Norway, rather than Hawaii. A joint US-Norway recovery operation was mounted, but was unsuccessful, and there was fear that the capsule ended in the possession of the Soviet Union. Such claims have never been verified. The flight and loss of Discoverer 2 was the inspiration for the book and film Ice Station Zebra.