United States Air ForceThor Delta LSpace Launch Complex 2E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
HEOS 2
Launched
January 31, 1972
Summary
HEOS 2 launched on an United States Air Force Thor Delta L from Space Launch Complex 2E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA on January 31, 1972. It was United States Air Force's 567th launch, 3rd this year and humanity's 1,311th orbital launch attempt. It was the 2nd Thor Delta L flight and the 1st this year. The payload was bound for Elliptical Orbit (Elliptical). The tracked orbit of HEOS 2, one of 5 catalogued objects, from February 11, 1972, was 660 × 230,453 km inclined 90.2°. 5 objects from this launch are catalogued, one of them a payload.
- Watch
- No webcast on record.
- Vehicle
- Thor Delta L · United States Air Force
- Booster
- No booster details on record.
- Mission
- Astrophysics · Elliptical Orbit (Elliptical)
- Milestone
- 2nd Thor Delta L flight · 1st this yearUnited States Air Force's 567th launch3rd this yearhumanity's 1,311th orbital launch attempt5th orbital launch attempt this year
Flight preview
Orbit: as tracked
HEOS 2 · NORAD 5814 · 1972-005 · Space-Track · tracking 1 of 5 objects
Show the numbers for orbit elements
- Object
- TBA - TO BE ASSIGNED
- Object ID
- 1972-005A
- Epoch
- 1972-02-11 03:10:49 UTC
- Mean motion
- 0.20391577 rev/day
- Eccentricity
- 0.9423328
- Inclination
- 90.213°
- Ascending node
- 91.508°
- Arg. of perigee
- 311.7318°
- Mean anomaly
- 0.5442°
- Element set
- 999
- Rev at epoch
- 2
- B*
- 0
Perigee, apogee and period are Kepler figures from the catalogued mean elements, not a propagated state. Published orbit: Elliptical. Ascent drawn from padside's representative profile.
Catalogued objects
5 catalogued: 1 payload, 2 rocket stages, 2 components
- HEOS 2 · NORAD 5814 · left Earth orbit February 1, 1972
Delta 87 · re-entered September 27, 1978
FW4D · left Earth orbit February 1, 1972
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
HEOS 2 was a spin-stabilized spacecraft with a highly eccentric orbit whose apogee occurred at high latitude. Its primary scientific mission was the investigation of interplanetary space and the high-latitude magnetosphere and its boundary in the region around the northern neutral point.
Pad
Space Launch Complex 2E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
46th launch from Space Launch Complex 2E, 1st this year · 377th from Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
47 launches from this pad · 919 from Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
102 days after the previous launch from this pad
Questions
When did HEOS 2 launch?
HEOS 2 launched on January 31, 1972. The time is known to the hour, not the minute.
Where can I watch HEOS 2?
No webcast is on record for this launch.
What rocket launched HEOS 2?
Thor Delta L, flown by United States Air Force. Thor Delta L spec sheet
Where did HEOS 2 launch from?
Space Launch Complex 2E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA.
What orbit did HEOS 2 reach?
The tracked orbit of HEOS 2, one of 5 catalogued objects, from February 11, 1972, was 660 × 230,453 km inclined 90.2°.
How many satellites did HEOS 2 launch?
1 payload from this launch is catalogued (Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org).