Discoverer 1

Launch data: Designation 00013 / 1959 Beta 1 / 59003A Launch date 28 Feb 1959 - 21:49:16 UT Launch site Va, LC75-3 pad 4 Launch vehicle Thor-DM18 Agena A (#163) Mission  Military: surveillance Polar Earth orbit on 28 Feb 1959: Perigee / Apogee  163? / 968? km Inclination  89,7?° Period  96? min

Mission details:

• Discoverer 1 was a test of the performance capabilities of the propulsion and guidance system of the booster and satellite. It was the first of a series of satellites which were part of the Corona reconnaissance satellite program. Launch took place from Vandenberg Air Force Base on a Thor-Agena A (1e launch). After first stage burnout at 28529 km/hr the rocket coasted to orbital altitude where the second stage guidance system oriented the spacecraft by means of pneumatic nitrogen jets. The second stage engine ignited when the correct attitude was achieved, putting the spacecraft into a polar orbit where it remained until re-entry on 17 March 1959. Discoverer 1 became the first man-made object ever put into a polar orbit. Difficulty was encountered receiving signals after launch, but the satellite broadcast intermittently later in the flight.
• Discoverer 1 was a 5.73 m long, 1.52 m diameter cylindrical Agena A upper stage capped by a conical nosecone. The satellite casing was made of magnesium. Most of the 18 kg payload, consisting of communication and telemetry equipment, was housed in the nosecone. It included a high-frequency low-power beacon transmitter for tracking and a radar beacon transmitter with a transponder to receive command signals and allow long-range radar tracking. Fifteen telemetry channels (10 continuous and 5 commuted) were used to relay roughly 100 aspects of spacecraft performance.
• It was a prototype of the KH-1 satellite, but didn't contain either a camera or a film capsule.