United States Air ForceDelta II 7425-9.5Space Launch Complex 17A, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
Mars Climate Orbiter
Launched
December 11, 1998
Image: NASA
Summary
Mars Climate Orbiter launched on an United States Air Force Delta II 7425-9.5 from Space Launch Complex 17A, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA on December 11, 1998. It was United States Air Force's 1,003rd launch, 16th this year and humanity's 4,285th orbital launch attempt. It was the 1st Delta II 7425-9.5 flight. The payload was bound for Heliocentric N/A (Helio-N/A). 3 objects from this launch are catalogued, one of them a payload.
- Watch
- No webcast on record.
- Vehicle
- Delta II 7425-9.5 · United States Air Force
- Booster
- No booster details on record.
- Mission
- Robotic Exploration · Heliocentric N/A (Helio-N/A)
- Milestone
- 1st Delta II 7425-9.5 flightUnited States Air Force's 1,003rd launch16th this yearhumanity's 4,285th orbital launch attempt78th orbital launch attempt this year
Flight preview
Catalogued objects
3 catalogued: 1 payload, 2 rocket stages
- Mars Climate Orbiter · NORAD 25571 · left Earth orbit December 12, 1998
Delta 264 · re-entered December 30, 1998
Delta 264 Stage 3 · left Earth orbit December 12, 1998
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
The Mars Surveyor '98 program is comprised of two spacecraft launched separately, the MCO (Mars Climate Orbiter, formerly the Mars Surveyor '98 Orbiter) and the MPL (Mars Polar Lander, formerly the Mars Surveyor '98 Lander). The two missions were to study the Martian weather, climate, and water and carbon dioxide budget, in order to understand the reservoirs, behavior, and atmospheric role of volatiles and to search for evidence of long-term and episodic climate changes. The Mars Climate Orbiter was destroyed when a navigation error caused it to miss its target altitude at Mars by 80 to 90 km, instead entering the Martian atmosphere at an altitude of 57 km during the orbit insertion maneuver.
Pad
Space Launch Complex 17A, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
120th launch from Space Launch Complex 17A, 5th this year · 556th from Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
145 launches from this pad · 1,131 from Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
48 days after the previous launch from this pad
Questions
When did Mars Climate Orbiter launch?
Mars Climate Orbiter launched on December 11, 1998. The time is known to the hour, not the minute.
Where can I watch Mars Climate Orbiter?
No webcast is on record for this launch.
What rocket launched Mars Climate Orbiter?
Delta II 7425-9.5, flown by United States Air Force. Delta II 7425-9.5 spec sheet
Where did Mars Climate Orbiter launch from?
Space Launch Complex 17A, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA.
What orbit was Mars Climate Orbiter going to?
Heliocentric N/A (Helio-N/A), a robotic exploration mission.
How many satellites did Mars Climate Orbiter launch?
1 payload from this launch is catalogued (Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org).