United States Air ForceDelta II 7320-10CSpace Launch Complex 17A, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
Swift
Launched
November 20, 2004
Image: NASA/KSC
Summary
Swift launched on an United States Air Force Delta II 7320-10C from Space Launch Complex 17A, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA on November 20, 2004. It was United States Air Force's 1,065th launch, 8th this year and humanity's 4,688th orbital launch attempt. It was the 1st Delta II 7320-10C flight. The payload was bound for low Earth orbit (LEO). Swift, one of 2 catalogued objects, reached a 594 × 611 km orbit inclined 20.5°. 2 objects from this launch are catalogued, one of them a payload.
- Watch
- No webcast on record.
- Vehicle
- Delta II 7320-10C · United States Air Force
- Booster
- No booster details on record.
- Mission
- Astrophysics · Low Earth Orbit (LEO)
- Milestone
- 1st Delta II 7320-10C flightUnited States Air Force's 1,065th launch8th this yearhumanity's 4,688th orbital launch attempt49th orbital launch attempt this year
Flight preview
Orbit: as tracked
Swift · NORAD 28485 · 2004-047 · Space-Track · tracking 1 of 2 objects
Show the numbers for orbit elements
- Object
- SWIFT
- Object ID
- 2004-047A
- Epoch
- 2004-11-20 18:26:48 UTC
- Mean motion
- 14.90782398 rev/day
- Eccentricity
- 0.0011945
- Inclination
- 20.5453°
- Ascending node
- 140.8073°
- Arg. of perigee
- 222.8611°
- Mean anomaly
- 137.1356°
- 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: LEO. Ascent drawn from padside's representative profile.
Catalogued objects
2 catalogued: 1 payload, 1 rocket stage
- Swift · NORAD 28485
Delta 309 · re-entered December 23, 2004
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
NASA Medium-class Explorer satellite dedicated to study of gamma ray bursts, the third after the IMAGE and WMAP satellites.
News
NASA Highlights Lessons Learned From Swift Boost MissionA commercial mission to boost NASA’s Swift observatory concluded without raising the spacecraft’s orbit, but the agency and industry vendor gained valuable experience that will benefit future in-space servicing programs.
Swift Rescue Mission May Not Have Succeeded, But No RegretsThe bold mission to extend the lifetime of NASA’s Swift observatory is coming to an end in the next 24 hours. Almost exactly one year after NASA signed a contract […]- Swift Reboost Mission Encounters SetbackKatalyst Space’s efforts to reboost NASA’s Swift observatory has encountered a setback. The LINK on-orbit servicing spacecraft is in a multi-axis spin. LINK must attach itself to Swift and raise […]
Swift reboost mission encounters attitude control problemsA spacecraft launched nearly a month ago in a high-risk bid to boost the orbit of a NASA astrophysics satellite is suffering attitude control problems that could jeopardize its mission.
NASA’s Swift Sees ‘Wandering’ Mega Black Hole Shredding StarNASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory captured an “orphan” black hole lighting up as it devoured a star on the outskirts of a faraway galaxy. These phenomena are rare to begin with, and none had ever before been seen so far outside of a galaxy’s core. “We were looking for these star-shredding events as a way […]
Need a Lift? NASA Launches Swift Rescue MissionThe LINK spacecraft aims to rendezvous, capture, and reboost NASA’s 21 year old Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory.- Katalyst’s LINK On Its Way to Reboost SwiftKatalyst Space’s LINK on-orbit servicing spacecraft is on its way to reboost NASA’s Swift observatory. Northrop Grumman’s Pegasus-XL rocket launched LINK this morning and contact has been successfully established, the […]
Pegasus launches Swift reboost missionA Pegasus XL launched a mission to reboost a NASA astrophysics spacecraft on what may be the final flight of that rocket.
Pad
Space Launch Complex 17A, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
135th launch from Space Launch Complex 17A, 1st this year · 629th from Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
145 launches from this pad · 1,131 from Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
335 days after the previous launch from this pad
Questions
When did Swift launch?
Swift launched on November 20, 2004. The time is known to the hour, not the minute.
Where can I watch Swift?
No webcast is on record for this launch.
What rocket launched Swift?
Delta II 7320-10C, flown by United States Air Force. Delta II 7320-10C spec sheet
Where did Swift launch from?
Space Launch Complex 17A, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA.
What orbit did Swift reach?
Swift, one of 2 catalogued objects, reached a 594 × 611 km orbit inclined 20.5°.
How many satellites did Swift launch?
1 payload from this launch is catalogued (Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org).