Soviet Space ProgramMolniya-M 2BL1/5, Baikonur Cosmodrome, Republic of Kazakhstan
Molniya-1 23
Launched
February 3, 1973
Image: Jonathan Space Report
Summary
Molniya-1 23 launched on a Soviet Space Program Molniya-M 2BL from 1/5, Baikonur Cosmodrome, Republic of Kazakhstan on February 3, 1973. It was Soviet Space Program's 719th launch, 7th this year and humanity's 1,429th orbital launch attempt. It was the 42nd Molniya-M 2BL flight and the 1st this year. The payload was bound for Elliptical Orbit (Elliptical). The tracked orbit of Molniya-1, one of 5 catalogued objects, from February 8, 1973, was 310 × 39,334 km inclined 65.0°. 5 objects from this launch are catalogued, one of them a payload.
- Watch
- No webcast on record.
- Vehicle
- Molniya-M 2BL · Soviet Space Program
- Booster
- No booster details on record.
- Mission
- Communications · Elliptical Orbit (Elliptical)
- Milestone
- 42nd Molniya-M 2BL flight · 1st this yearSoviet Space Program's 719th launch7th this yearhumanity's 1,429th orbital launch attempt7th orbital launch attempt this year
Flight preview
Orbit: as tracked
Molniya-1 · NORAD 6356 · 1973-007 · Space-Track · tracking 1 of 5 objects
Show the numbers for orbit elements
- Object
- MOLNIYA 1-23
- Object ID
- 1973-007A
- Epoch
- 1973-02-08 16:07:57 UTC
- Mean motion
- 2.04794263 rev/day
- Eccentricity
- 0.744927
- Inclination
- 65.0033°
- Ascending node
- 255.5544°
- Arg. of perigee
- 284.6444°
- Mean anomaly
- 9.7472°
- Element set
- 999
- Rev at epoch
- 12
- 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; none still in orbit
- Molniya-1 · NORAD 6356 · re-entered October 23, 1977
Molniya-M 1421-514 Blok-I · re-entered March 13, 1973
Blok-L · re-entered August 4, 1978
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
The Molniya were Soviet communication satellites operating from an inclined highly elliptical earth orbit of 500 km × 40000 km with 12 hour period for coverage of high northern latitudes.
Pad
1/5, Baikonur Cosmodrome, Republic of Kazakhstan
130th launch from 1/5, 1st this year · 369th from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Republic of Kazakhstan
487 launches from this pad · 1,565 from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Republic of Kazakhstan
63 days after the previous launch from this pad
All launches from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Republic of KazakhstanOpen in maps
Questions
When did Molniya-1 23 launch?
Molniya-1 23 launched on February 3, 1973. The time is known to the hour, not the minute.
Where can I watch Molniya-1 23?
No webcast is on record for this launch.
What rocket launched Molniya-1 23?
Molniya-M 2BL, flown by Soviet Space Program. Molniya-M 2BL spec sheet
Where did Molniya-1 23 launch from?
1/5, Baikonur Cosmodrome, Republic of Kazakhstan.
What orbit did Molniya-1 23 reach?
The tracked orbit of Molniya-1, one of 5 catalogued objects, from February 8, 1973, was 310 × 39,334 km inclined 65.0°.
How many satellites did Molniya-1 23 launch?
1 payload from this launch is catalogued, no longer in orbit (Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org).