United States Air ForceThor Delta NSpace Launch Complex 2E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
ESSA 7
Launched
August 16, 1968
Image: NOAA
Summary
ESSA 7 launched on an United States Air Force Thor Delta N from Space Launch Complex 2E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA on August 16, 1968. It was United States Air Force's 457th launch, 24th this year and humanity's 866th orbital launch attempt. It was the 1st Thor Delta N flight. The payload was bound for Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO). ESSA 7, one of 5 catalogued objects, reached a 1,475 × 1,478 km orbit inclined 101.7°. 5 objects from this launch are catalogued, one of them a payload.
- Watch
- No webcast on record.
- Vehicle
- Thor Delta N · United States Air Force
- Booster
- No booster details on record.
- Mission
- Earth Science · Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO)
- Milestone
- 1st Thor Delta N flightUnited States Air Force's 457th launch24th this yearhumanity's 866th orbital launch attempt78th orbital launch attempt this year
Flight preview
Orbit: as tracked
ESSA 7 · NORAD 3345 · 1968-069 · Space-Track · tracking 1 of 5 objects
Show the numbers for orbit elements
- Object
- ESSA 7 (TOS-E)
- Object ID
- 1968-069A
- Epoch
- 1968-08-16 12:30:09 UTC
- Mean motion
- 12.48847507 rev/day
- Eccentricity
- 0.0002
- Inclination
- 101.7158°
- Ascending node
- 188.414°
- Arg. of perigee
- 142.1143°
- Mean anomaly
- 218.0076°
- Element set
- 999
- Rev at epoch
- 1
- B*
- 0
Perigee, apogee and period are Kepler figures from the catalogued mean elements, not a propagated state. Published orbit: SSO. Ascent drawn from padside's representative profile.
Catalogued objects
5 catalogued: 1 payload, 1 rocket stage, 3 components; 5 still in orbit
- ESSA 7 · NORAD 3345 · in orbit
Delta 58 · in orbit
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
The ESSA series was the second generation of US meterological satellites after the TIROS (Television & Infra-Red Observation Satellite) series. They were also called OT (Operational TIROS), TOS (TIROS Operational Satellite).
Pad
Space Launch Complex 2E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
37th launch from Space Launch Complex 2E, 4th this year · 306th from Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
47 launches from this pad · 919 from Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
42 days after the previous launch from this pad
Questions
When did ESSA 7 launch?
ESSA 7 launched on August 16, 1968. The time is known to the hour, not the minute.
Where can I watch ESSA 7?
No webcast is on record for this launch.
What rocket launched ESSA 7?
Thor Delta N, flown by United States Air Force. Thor Delta N spec sheet
Where did ESSA 7 launch from?
Space Launch Complex 2E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA.
What orbit did ESSA 7 reach?
ESSA 7, one of 5 catalogued objects, reached a 1,475 × 1,478 km orbit inclined 101.7°.
How many satellites did ESSA 7 launch?
1 payload from this launch is catalogued, still in orbit (Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org).