Soviet Space ProgramMolniya-M 2BL43/3 (43L), Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russian Federation
Molniya-3 20L
Launched
January 24, 1978
Image: Jonathan Space Report
Summary
Molniya-3 20L launched on a Soviet Space Program Molniya-M 2BL from 43/3 (43L), Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russian Federation on January 24, 1978. It was Soviet Space Program's 1,190th launch, 8th this year and humanity's 2,054th orbital launch attempt. It was the 92nd Molniya-M 2BL flight and the 1st this year. The payload was bound for Elliptical Orbit (Elliptical). Molniya-3, one of 5 catalogued objects, reached a 652 × 40,624 km orbit inclined 62.8°. 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
- 92nd Molniya-M 2BL flight · 1st this yearSoviet Space Program's 1,190th launch8th this yearhumanity's 2,054th orbital launch attempt9th orbital launch attempt this year
Flight preview
Orbit: as tracked
Molniya-3 · NORAD 10605 · 1978-009 · Space-Track · tracking 1 of 5 objects
Show the numbers for orbit elements
- Object
- MOLNIYA 3-9
- Object ID
- 1978-009A
- Epoch
- 1978-01-24 20:20:22 UTC
- Mean motion
- 1.95586521 rev/day
- Eccentricity
- 0.7399641
- Inclination
- 62.8128°
- Ascending node
- 175.9968°
- Arg. of perigee
- 287.984°
- Mean anomaly
- 8.5848°
- 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; none still in orbit
- Molniya-3 · NORAD 10605 · re-entered April 24, 1990
Molniya-M 26-596 Blok-I · re-entered March 12, 1978
Blok-L · re-entered August 9, 1990
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
Molniya communication satellites operating from a highly elliptical orbit
Pad
43/3 (43L), Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russian Federation
73rd launch from 43/3 (43L), 3rd this year · 599th from Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russian Federation
234 launches from this pad · 1,688 from Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russian Federation
10 days after the previous launch from this pad
All launches from Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russian FederationOpen in maps
Questions
When did Molniya-3 20L launch?
Molniya-3 20L launched on January 24, 1978. The time is known to the hour, not the minute.
Where can I watch Molniya-3 20L?
No webcast is on record for this launch.
What rocket launched Molniya-3 20L?
Molniya-M 2BL, flown by Soviet Space Program. Molniya-M 2BL spec sheet
Where did Molniya-3 20L launch from?
43/3 (43L), Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russian Federation.
What orbit did Molniya-3 20L reach?
Molniya-3, one of 5 catalogued objects, reached a 652 × 40,624 km orbit inclined 62.8°.
How many satellites did Molniya-3 20L launch?
1 payload from this launch is catalogued, no longer in orbit (Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org).