Orbital Sciences CorporationMinotaur IV+Launch Pad 1, Pacific Spaceport Complex, Alaska, USA
TacSat-4
Launched
September 27, 2011
Image: US Navy
Summary
TacSat-4 launched on an Orbital Sciences Corporation Minotaur IV+ from Launch Pad 1, Pacific Spaceport Complex, Alaska, USA on September 27, 2011. It was Orbital Sciences Corporation's 63rd launch, 4th this year and humanity's 5,161st orbital launch attempt. It was the 1st Minotaur IV+ flight. The payload was bound for Elliptical Orbit (Elliptical). TacSat-4, one of 2 catalogued objects, reached a 362 × 11,849 km orbit inclined 63.4°. 2 objects from this launch are catalogued, one of them a payload.
- Watch
- Sunrise launch for TacSat-4spaceflightnow
- Vehicle
- Minotaur IV+ · Orbital Sciences Corporation
- Booster
- No booster details on record.
- Mission
- Technology · Elliptical Orbit (Elliptical)
- Milestone
- 1st Minotaur IV+ flightOrbital Sciences Corporation's 63rd launch4th this yearhumanity's 5,161st orbital launch attempt55th orbital launch attempt this year
Flight preview
Orbit: as tracked
TacSat-4 · NORAD 37818 · 2011-052 · Space-Track · tracking 1 of 2 objects
Show the numbers for orbit elements
- Object
- TBA - TO BE ASSIGNED
- Object ID
- 2011-052A
- Epoch
- 2011-09-27 17:31:04 UTC
- Mean motion
- 6.22934381 rev/day
- Eccentricity
- 0.4603346
- Inclination
- 63.3848°
- Ascending node
- 320.8316°
- Arg. of perigee
- 210.6626°
- Mean anomaly
- 111.6152°
- 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: Elliptical. Ascent drawn from padside's representative profile.
Catalogued objects
2 catalogued: 1 payload, 1 rocket stage; 1 still in orbit
- TacSat-4 · NORAD 37818 · in orbit
Minotaur Stage 4 · re-entered September 13, 2013
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
TacSat-4 was a US Naval Research Laboratory experimental communications satellite that placed a large UHF antenna in a highly elliptical orbit to provide on-the-move communications and data exfiltration for deployed forces, including coverage of high latitudes.
Pad
Launch Pad 1, Pacific Spaceport Complex, Alaska, USA
3rd launch from Launch Pad 1, 1st this year · 3rd from Pacific Spaceport Complex, Alaska, USA
3 launches from this pad · 9 from Pacific Spaceport Complex, Alaska, USA
311 days after the previous launch from this pad
All launches from Pacific Spaceport Complex, Alaska, USAOpen in maps
Questions
When did TacSat-4 launch?
TacSat-4 launched on September 27, 2011. The time is known to the hour, not the minute.
Where can I watch TacSat-4?
Coverage: Sunrise launch for TacSat-4. Watch the replay
What rocket launched TacSat-4?
Minotaur IV+, flown by Orbital Sciences Corporation. Minotaur IV+ spec sheet
Where did TacSat-4 launch from?
Launch Pad 1, Pacific Spaceport Complex, Alaska, USA.
What orbit did TacSat-4 reach?
TacSat-4, one of 2 catalogued objects, reached a 362 × 11,849 km orbit inclined 63.4°.
How many satellites did TacSat-4 launch?
1 payload from this launch is catalogued, still in orbit (Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org).