Cosmos 133
Encyclopedia
Kosmos 133 was a Soviet Soyuz programme
test satellite launched from the Baikonur
cosmodrome aboard a Vostok rocket
. It was the first test flight of the Soyuz 7K-OK earth orbit spacecraft. It was a planned "all up" test with a second Soyuz to be launched the following day and automatically dock with Kosmos 133. Its attitude control system malfunctioned, resulting in rapid consumption of orientation fuel, leaving it spinning at 2 rpm. After large efforts by ground control and 5 attempts at retrofire over two days, the craft was finally coming down for a landing. Due to the inaccuracy of the reentry burn, it was determined that the capsule would land in China
. The self-destruct command was given and the satellite exploded November 30, 1966 at 10:21 GMT.
Soyuz programme
The Soyuz programme is a human spaceflight programme that was initiated by the Soviet Union in the early 1960s, originally part of a Moon landing project intended to put a Soviet cosmonaut on the Moon...
test satellite launched from the Baikonur
Baikonur
Baikonur , formerly known as Leninsk, is a city in Kyzylorda Province of Kazakhstan, rented and administered by the Russian Federation. It was constructed to service the Baikonur Cosmodrome and was officially renamed Baikonur by Russian president Boris Yeltsin on December 20, 1995.The shape of the...
cosmodrome aboard a Vostok rocket
Vostok rocket
Vostok was a family of rockets derived from the Soviet R-7 Semyorka ICBM designed for the human spaceflight programme. This family of rockets launched the first artificial satellite and the first manned spacecraft in human history...
. It was the first test flight of the Soyuz 7K-OK earth orbit spacecraft. It was a planned "all up" test with a second Soyuz to be launched the following day and automatically dock with Kosmos 133. Its attitude control system malfunctioned, resulting in rapid consumption of orientation fuel, leaving it spinning at 2 rpm. After large efforts by ground control and 5 attempts at retrofire over two days, the craft was finally coming down for a landing. Due to the inaccuracy of the reentry burn, it was determined that the capsule would land in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. The self-destruct command was given and the satellite exploded November 30, 1966 at 10:21 GMT.
Mission parameters
- Spacecraft: Soyuz 7K-OK
- Mass: 6450 kg
- Crew: None
- Launched: November 28, 1966 at 11:02:00 UTC
- Landed: November 30, 1966 at 10:21 UTC
- Perigee: 171 km
- Apogee: 223 km
- Inclination: 51.9°
- Period: 88.4 minutes
- NSSDC ID: 1966-107A