National Aeronautics and Space AdministrationScout X-4Space Launch Complex 5, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
Explorer 20
Launched
August 25, 1964
Image: U.S. Air Force
Summary
Explorer 20 launched on a National Aeronautics and Space Administration Scout X-4 from Space Launch Complex 5, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA on August 25, 1964. It was National Aeronautics and Space Administration's 55th launch, 6th this year and humanity's 353rd orbital launch attempt. It was the 5th Scout X-4 flight and the 3rd this year. The payload was bound for low Earth orbit (LEO). Explorer 20, one of 6 catalogued objects, reached a 881 × 1,032 km orbit inclined 79.8°. 6 objects from this launch are catalogued, one of them a payload.
- Watch
- No webcast on record.
- Booster
- No booster details on record.
- Mission
- Earth Science · Low Earth Orbit (LEO)
- Milestone
- 5th Scout X-4 flight · 3rd this yearNational Aeronautics and Space Administration's 55th launch6th this yearhumanity's 353rd orbital launch attempt60th orbital launch attempt this year
Flight preview
Orbit: as tracked
Explorer 20 · NORAD 870 · 1964-051 · Space-Track · tracking 1 of 6 objects
Show the numbers for orbit elements
- Object
- EXPLORER 20
- Object ID
- 1964-051A
- Epoch
- 1964-08-25 18:18:46 UTC
- Mean motion
- 13.84115499 rev/day
- Eccentricity
- 0.0102641
- Inclination
- 79.7714°
- Ascending node
- 246.9832°
- Arg. of perigee
- 303.6554°
- Mean anomaly
- 55.4026°
- Element set
- 999
- Rev at epoch
- 3
- B*
- 0
Perigee, apogee and period are Kepler figures from the catalogued mean elements, not a propagated state. Published orbit: LEO. Ascent drawn from padside's representative profile.
Catalogued objects
6 catalogued: 1 payload, 1 rocket stage, 4 debris; 2 still in orbit
- Explorer 20 · NORAD 870 · in orbit
Scout S134R Stage 4 · in orbit
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
Explorer 20 (IE A, Ionospheric Explorer A, TOPSI, Top Side Explorer or S 48) was designed to measure electron distribution, ion density and temperature, and to estimate cosmic noise levels between 2 and 7 MHz.
Pad
Space Launch Complex 5, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
13th launch from Space Launch Complex 5, 3rd this year · 142nd from Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
69 launches from this pad · 919 from Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
61 days after the previous launch from this pad
Questions
When did Explorer 20 launch?
Explorer 20 launched on August 25, 1964. The time is known to the hour, not the minute.
Where can I watch Explorer 20?
No webcast is on record for this launch.
What rocket launched Explorer 20?
Scout X-4, flown by National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Scout X-4 spec sheet
Where did Explorer 20 launch from?
Space Launch Complex 5, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA.
What orbit did Explorer 20 reach?
Explorer 20, one of 6 catalogued objects, reached a 881 × 1,032 km orbit inclined 79.8°.
How many satellites did Explorer 20 launch?
1 payload from this launch is catalogued, still in orbit (Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org).