Jonathan's Space Report

Jul 26, 1989 (no. 20)

Twenty years on ... 
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OV-102 Columbia is on the pad. The payload is a new imaging
recon satellite, presumably KH-12. (AvLeak, latest issue).
Mission STS-28 is due for early August.

One of the oldest satellites in orbit has reentered; the Sergeant rocket
used to launch Explorer VII in Oct 1959 burnt up on 16 July.  This is
the first time that a satellite of this vintage has reentered since 1982
(a fragment from Vanguard 3) and 1970 (Explorer I).  Still in orbit are
(from 1958) Vanguard I, its final stage rocket, and a separation clamp
which had connected them; and (from 1959) Vanguard 2, its final stage
rocket, and Explorer VII itself.  (In deep space, we also have the first
Luna AMS, its Blok-E final stage, the US Army Pioneer IV, and its
Sergeant final stage.)

The Japanese satellite Ohzora reentered on Jul 19 after 5 years in space;
and BP-26, a boilerplate Apollo spacecraft launched on a Saturn I test,
reentered on Jul 8.

Kosmos-2028 landed on Jul 6 after 20 days in orbit. This is the
first time that a standard Vostok-type recon satellite has 
flown such a long mission, although the same spacecraft type has
flown 20-day missions in the Resurs-F and biosatellite programs.

The Kosmos-2020 recon satellite reentered on Jul 15 after two months
in orbit. It was replaced by Kosmos-2030 launched on Jul 12

Another Resurs-F remote sensing satellite was launched on Jul 18,
together with two Pion air density subsatellites.  This satellite seems
to be on a mission similar to the first Resurs-F, while the second
Resurs-F was a short duration flight which released no subsatellites. 

Kosmos-2031, launched on Jul 18, is a recon satellite in an unusual 50.6
degree orbit. 

Kosmos-2032 was launched on Jul 20 into a low altitude 82 degree polar orbit. Satellites
in such an orbit are usually announced as being operated by the Priroda remote sensing
center, but there is about one exception a year, and this is it. It may be a 
military recon satellite with a target in the far north.

Kosmos-2033 was launched on Jul 24.

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