Lockheed MartinAtlas IIALaunch Complex 36A, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
INMARSAT III F-1
Launched
April 3, 1996
Image: Department of Defense
Summary
INMARSAT III F-1 launched on a Lockheed Martin Atlas IIA from Launch Complex 36A, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA on April 3, 1996. It was Lockheed Martin's 18th launch, 2nd this year and humanity's 4,062nd orbital launch attempt. It was the 7th Atlas IIA flight and the 1st this year. The payload was bound for Geostationary Orbit (Direct-GEO). INMARSAT III F-1, one of 2 catalogued objects, reached a 1,029 × 35,734 km orbit inclined 21.8°. 2 objects from this launch are catalogued, one of them a payload.
- Watch
- No webcast on record.
- Vehicle
- Atlas IIA · Lockheed Martin
- Booster
- No booster details on record.
- Mission
- Communications · Geostationary Orbit (Direct-GEO)
- Milestone
- 7th Atlas IIA flight · 1st this yearLockheed Martin's 18th launch2nd this yearhumanity's 4,062nd orbital launch attempt21st orbital launch attempt this year
Flight preview
Orbit: as tracked
INMARSAT III F-1 · NORAD 23839 · 1996-020 · Space-Track · tracking 1 of 2 objects
Show the numbers for orbit elements
- Object
- INMARSAT 3-F1
- Object ID
- 1996-020A
- Epoch
- 1996-04-03 17:22:42 UTC
- Mean motion
- 2.22933601 rev/day
- Eccentricity
- 0.7010507
- Inclination
- 21.8371°
- Ascending node
- 346.9457°
- Arg. of perigee
- 185.1331°
- Mean anomaly
- 157.6527°
- Element set
- 999
- Rev at epoch
- 0
- B*
- 0
Perigee, apogee and period are Kepler figures from the catalogued mean elements, not a propagated state. Published orbit: Direct-GEO. Ascent drawn from padside's representative profile.
Catalogued objects
2 catalogued: 1 payload, 1 rocket stage; 1 still in orbit
- INMARSAT III F-1 · NORAD 23839
Centaur AC-122 · in orbit
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
Launched in 1996-8, the Inmarsat-3s were built by Lockheed Martin Astro Space (now Lockheed Martin Missiles & Space) of the USA, responsible for the basic spacecraft, and the European Matra Marconi Space (now Astrium), which developed the communications payload.
Pad
Launch Complex 36A, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
44th launch from Launch Complex 36A, 1st this year · 511th from Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
71 launches from this pad · 1,131 from Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
110 days after the previous launch from this pad
Questions
When did INMARSAT III F-1 launch?
INMARSAT III F-1 launched on April 3, 1996. The time is known to the hour, not the minute.
Where can I watch INMARSAT III F-1?
No webcast is on record for this launch.
What rocket launched INMARSAT III F-1?
Atlas IIA, flown by Lockheed Martin. Atlas IIA spec sheet
Where did INMARSAT III F-1 launch from?
Launch Complex 36A, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA.
What orbit did INMARSAT III F-1 reach?
INMARSAT III F-1, one of 2 catalogued objects, reached a 1,029 × 35,734 km orbit inclined 21.8°.
How many satellites did INMARSAT III F-1 launch?
1 payload from this launch is catalogued (Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org).