Astronomy:Explorer 34

Explorer 34

Image of the satellite Explorer 34.
Mission type	Space research
Operator	NASA
COSPAR ID	1967-051A
SATCAT no.	2817
Spacecraft properties
Launch mass	163 kg (359 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date	24 May 1967, 14:05:54 (1967-05-24UTC14:05:54) UTC
Rocket	Delta E 486/D49
Launch site	Vandenberg Air Force Base SLC-2E
End of mission
Decay date	May 3, 1969 (1969-05-04)
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Highly Elliptical
Eccentricity	0.92489
Perigee altitude	2,031 km (1,262 mi)
Apogee altitude	209,242 km (130,017 mi)
Inclination	68.5°
Period	6,218.3 minutes
Epoch	24 May 1967
Instruments
Instruments Low-Energy Solid-State Telescope Ion Chamber Cosmic-Ray Proton Low-Energy Proton and Electron Differential Energy Analyzer Cosmic-Ray Anisotropy Spherical Electrostatic Analyzer Solar Proton Monitoring Experiment Electrostatic Analyzer Low-Energy Proton and Alpha Detector Cosmic-Ray Energy vs Energy Loss Triaxial Fluxgate Magnetometer
Explorers

Explorer 34, also called IMP-4 and Interplanetary Monitoring Platform IMP-F, was an United States satellite launched as part of Explorers program. Explorer 34 as launched on 24 May 1967 on Vandenberg Air Force Base , California , United States , with Delta rocket. Explorer 34 was the fourth satellite of the Interplanetary Monitoring Platform.

Mission

Explorer 34 was placed into a high-inclination, highly eccentric earth orbit. The apogee point was located near the ecliptic plane and had an initial local time of about 1,900 hours. The spacecraft was spin-stabilized and had an initial spin period of 2.6 seconds. The spin vector was approximately perpendicular to the ecliptic plane. Like the earlier IMPs, this spacecraft was instrumented to study interplanetary magnetic fields, energetic particles, and plasma.

The spacecraft optical aspect system failed on 4 March 1969. Otherwise, useful data were acquired until just before spacecraft reentry, which occurred on 3 May 1969.

See also

• Explorer 18
• Explorer 21