Orbital Sciences CorporationPegasus HybridVandenberg Space Force Base, Air launch to orbit
Miniature Sensor Technology Integration 3 (MSTI-3)
Launched
May 17, 1996
Image: NASA
Summary
MSTI-3 launched on an Orbital Sciences Corporation Pegasus Hybrid from Vandenberg Space Force Base, Air launch to orbit on May 17, 1996. It was Orbital Sciences Corporation's 12th launch, 2nd this year and humanity's 4,074th orbital launch attempt. It was the 2nd Pegasus Hybrid flight and the 1st this year. The payload was bound for Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO). MSTI 3, one of 2 catalogued objects, reached a 298 × 369 km orbit inclined 97.1°. 2 objects from this launch are catalogued, one of them a payload.
- Watch
- No webcast on record.
- Booster
- No booster details on record.
- Mission
- Technology · Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO)
- Milestone
- 2nd Pegasus Hybrid flight · 1st this yearOrbital Sciences Corporation's 12th launch2nd this yearhumanity's 4,074th orbital launch attempt33rd orbital launch attempt this year
Flight preview
Orbit: as tracked
MSTI 3 · NORAD 23868 · 1996-031 · Space-Track · tracking 1 of 2 objects
Show the numbers for orbit elements
- Object
- MSTI 3
- Object ID
- 1996-031A
- Epoch
- 1996-05-17 03:42:39 UTC
- Mean motion
- 15.81517987 rev/day
- Eccentricity
- 0.0053083
- Inclination
- 97.0527°
- Ascending node
- 328.9254°
- Arg. of perigee
- 169.5026°
- Mean anomaly
- 192.1111°
- 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: SSO. Ascent drawn from padside's representative profile.
Catalogued objects
2 catalogued: 1 payload, 1 rocket stage; none still in orbit
- MSTI 3 · NORAD 23868 · deorbited December 11, 1997
Pegasus F11 Stage 3 · re-entered October 11, 1996
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
MSTI-3 was the third Miniature Sensor Technology Integration satellite for the US Air Force and the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization. It gathered infrared background clutter data and tested tracking of ballistic missiles during their coast phase from a sun-synchronous orbit.
Pad
Vandenberg Space Force Base, Air launch to orbit
5th launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base, 2nd this year · 11th from Air launch to orbit
22 launches from this pad · 52 from Air launch to orbit
69 days after the previous launch from this pad
Questions
When did MSTI-3 launch?
MSTI-3 launched on May 17, 1996. The time is known to the hour, not the minute.
Where can I watch MSTI-3?
No webcast is on record for this launch.
What rocket launched MSTI-3?
Pegasus Hybrid, flown by Orbital Sciences Corporation. Pegasus Hybrid spec sheet
Where did MSTI-3 launch from?
Vandenberg Space Force Base, Air launch to orbit.
What orbit did MSTI-3 reach?
MSTI 3, one of 2 catalogued objects, reached a 298 × 369 km orbit inclined 97.1°.
How many satellites did MSTI-3 launch?
1 payload from this launch is catalogued, no longer in orbit (Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org).