This page no longer updated from 31 October 2001. Latest version can be found at www.astronautix.com
Class: Calibration. Nation: USA. Agency: U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy. Radar calibration objects (but also cover for other classified subsatellites).
Specification
Calsphere Chronology
06 October 1964
Calsphere 2 Launch Site: Vandenberg . Launch Vehicle: Thor Able-Star. Mass: 10 kg. Perigee: 1,047 km. Apogee: 1,075 km. Inclination: 90.1 deg. Space craft engaged in investigation of spaceflight techniques and technology (US Cat A).
13 August 1965
Calsphere 4A Launch Site: Vandenberg . Launch Vehicle: Thor Able-Star. Mass: 2 kg. Perigee: 1,074 km. Apogee: 1,181 km. Inclination: 90.1 deg. Surveillance Calibration; white 14 inch dia. sphere.
31 May 1967
Calsphere 4 Launch Site: Vandenberg . Launch Vehicle: Thor Agena D. Perigee: 815 km. Apogee: 834 km. Inclination: 69.9 deg. Space craft engaged in investigation of spaceflight techniques and technology (US Cat A).
16 August 1968
AVL-802 Grid Sphere 7-2 Launch Site: Vandenberg . Launch Vehicle: SLV-3 Atlas. FAILURE: Failure.
17 February 1971
Calsphere 3A Launch Site: Vandenberg . Launch Vehicle: Thor Burner. Mass: 1 kg. Perigee: 509 km. Apogee: 531 km. Inclination: 98.4 deg. Radar calibarion sphere. Space craft engaged in investigation of spaceflight techniques and technology (US Cat A).
Bibliography:- 2 - McDowell, Jonathan, The United Nations Registry of Space Objects, Harvard University, 1997. HTML when accessed: http://hea-www.harvard.edu/QEDT/jcm/space/un/un.html
- 6 - JPL Mission and Spacecraft Library, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 1997. HTML when accessed: http://msl.jpl.nasa.gov/home.html
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Last update 12 March 2001.
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© Mark Wade, 2001 .