Vanguard 2

Vanguard 2 (or Vanguard 2E before launch) is an Earth-orbiting satellite launched 17 February 1959 at 15:55:02 GMT, aboard a Vanguard SLV-4 rocket as part of the United States Navy's Project Vanguard. The satellite was designed to measure cloud cover distribution over the daylight portion of its orbit, for a period of 19 days, and to provide information on the density of the atmosphere for the lifetime of its orbit (about 300 years). As the first weather satellite and one of the first orbital space missions, the launch of Vanguard 2 was an important milestone in the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union. Vanguard 2 remains in orbit.

Vanguard 2
A model of the Vanguard 2 satellite in front of the Goddard Space Flight Center.
NamesVanguard Space Launch Vehicle-4
Mission typeWeather satellite
Air Density Experiment
OperatorNaval Research Laboratory
Harvard designation1959 Alpha 1
COSPAR ID1959-001A
SATCAT no.00011
Mission durationWeather observation: 19 days (achieved)
64 years, 11 months and 30 days (in orbit)
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft typeVanguard 2E
BusVanguard
ManufacturerNaval Research Laboratory
Launch mass10.75 kg (23.7 lb)
Dimensions50.8 cm (20.0 in) of diameter
Start of mission
Launch date17 February 1959,
15:55:02 GMT
RocketVanguard SLV-4
Launch siteCape Canaveral, LC-18A
ContractorGlenn L. Martin Company
End of mission
Last contact15 March 1959
Decay date2259 (estimated)
~ 300 years orbital lifetime
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric orbit
RegimeMedium Earth orbit
Perigee altitude559 km (347 mi)
Apogee altitude3,320 km (2,060 mi)
Inclination32.88°
Period125.80 minutes
Instruments
Optical scanner
Radio beacon
 
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