Kosmos 166

Kosmos 166
Mission typeSolar imaging
COSPAR ID1967-061A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.02848
Mission duration131 days
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft typeDS-U3-S
ManufacturerYuzhnoye
Launch mass400 kg[1]
Start of mission
Launch date16 June 1967, 04:44:00 GMT
RocketKosmos-2I 63SM
Launch siteKapustin Yar, 86/1
ContractorYuzhnoye
End of mission
Decay date25 October 1967
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric[2]
RegimeLow Earth
Perigee altitude281 km
Apogee altitude553 km
Inclination48.4°
Period92.6 minutes
Epoch16 June 1967

Kosmos 166 (Russian: Космос 166 meaning Cosmos 166), also known as DS-U3-S No.1, was a satellite which was launched by the Soviet Union in 1967 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme. It was a 400 kilograms (880 lb) spacecraft,[1] which was built by the Yuzhnoye Design Office, and was used to conduct multispectral imaging of the Sun.[3]

Kosmos 166 was launched from Site 86/1 at Kapustin Yar, aboard a Kosmos-2I 63SM carrier rocket.[4] The launch occurred at 04:44:00 GMT on 16 June 1967, and resulted in the successful insertion of the satellite into a low Earth orbit.[5] Upon reaching orbit, the satellite was assigned its Kosmos designation, and received the International Designator 1967-061A.[1] The North American Air Defense Command assigned it the catalogue number 02848.[1]

Kosmos 166 was the first of two DS-U3-S satellites to be launched,[3] the other being Kosmos 230.[6] It was operated in an orbit with a perigee of 281 kilometres (175 mi), an apogee of 553 kilometres (344 mi), an inclination of 48.4°, and an orbital period of 92.6 minutes.[2] It completed operations on 26 September 1967,[7] before decaying from orbit and reentering the atmosphere on 25 October.[8]

  1. ^ a b c d "Cosmos 166:Display 1967-061A". nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov. NASA. 27 February 2020. Retrieved 17 April 2020. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  2. ^ a b "Cosmos 166:Trajectory 1967-061A". nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov. NASA. 27 February 2020. Retrieved 17 April 2020. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. ^ a b Wade, Mark. "DS-U3-S". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 8 January 2010. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  4. ^ McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  5. ^ Wade, Mark. "Kosmos 2". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 18 June 2012. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  6. ^ Krebs, Gunter. "DS-U3-S". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  7. ^ "World Civil Satellites 1957-2006". Space Security Index. Archived from the original on 18 July 2011. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  8. ^ McDowell, Jonathan. "Satellite Catalog". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 26 December 2009.