Kosmos 880

Kosmos 880 (Russian: Космос 880 meaning Cosmos 880) was a satellite which was used as a target for tests of anti-satellite weapons. It was launched by the Soviet Union in 1976 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme,[1] and used as a target for Kosmos 886, as part of the Istrebitel Sputnikov programme.[2]

Kosmos 880

Mission type	ASAT target
COSPAR ID	1976-120A
SATCAT no.	09601
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type	Lira
Manufacturer	Yuzhnoye
Launch mass	650 kilograms (1,430 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date	9 December 1976, 20:00 UTC
Rocket	Kosmos-3M
Launch site	Plesetsk 132/2
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Low Earth
Perigee altitude	558 kilometres (347 mi)
Apogee altitude	614 kilometres (382 mi)
Inclination	65.8 degrees
Period	96.3 minutes

It was launched aboard a Kosmos-3M carrier rocket,[3] from Site 132/2 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome. The launch occurred at 20:00 UTC on 9 December 1976.[4]

Kosmos 880 was placed into a low Earth orbit with a perigee of 558 kilometres (347 mi), an apogee of 614 kilometres (382 mi), 65.8 degrees of inclination, and an orbital period of 96.3 minutes.[1] It was successfully intercepted and destroyed by Kosmos 886 on 27 December.[2] The last catalogued piece of debris decayed from orbit on 9 December 2001.[5]

Kosmos 880 was the fourth of ten Lira satellites to be launched,[1] of which all but the first were successful. Lira was derived from the earlier DS-P1-M satellite, which it replaced.

See also

• 1976 in spaceflight

References

1. Wade, Mark. "DS-P1-I". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 5 January 2009. Retrieved 30 May 2009.
2. Wade, Mark. "IS-A". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 21 April 2012. Retrieved 30 May 2009.
3. McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 30 May 2009.
4. Wade, Mark. "Kosmos 3". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Retrieved 30 May 2009.
5. McDowell, Jonathan. "Satellite Catalog". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 30 May 2009.