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A Molniya orbit (Russian: Молния, IPA: [ˈmolnʲɪjə] ⓘ, "Lightning") is a type of satellite orbit designed to provide communications and remote sensing coverage over high latitudes. It is a highly elliptical orbit with an inclination of 63.4 degrees , an argument of perigee of 270 degrees, and an orbital period of approximately half a ...
The ground track of a Molniya orbit. If the argument of perigee is zero, meaning that perigee and apogee lie in the equatorial plane, then the ground track of the satellite will appear the same above and below the equator (i.e., it will exhibit 180° rotational symmetry about the orbital nodes.) If the argument of perigee is non-zero, however ...
They were also based on the KAUR-2 bus, launching solely from Plesetsk. Earlier models were used for civilian communications in a similar orbit, but different purpose, to the military-only Molniya-1 satellites. From 1980s they were used by the military, and by the 1990s they were operated in the same manner as the Molniya 1 satellites. [17]
A highly elliptical orbit (HEO) is an elliptic orbit with high eccentricity, usually referring to one around Earth. Examples of inclined HEO orbits include Molniya orbits , named after the Molniya Soviet communication satellites which used them, and Tundra orbits .
The ground track of a satellite in a Tundra orbit is a closed figure 8 with a smaller loop over either the northern or southern hemisphere. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] This differentiates them from Molniya orbits designed to service high-latitude regions, which have the same inclination but half the period and do not loiter over a single region.
Repeat orbit: An orbit where the ground track of the satellite repeats after a period of time. Gangale orbit: a solar orbit near Mars whose period is one Martian year, but whose eccentricity and inclination both differ from that of Mars such that a relay satellite in a Gangale orbit is visible from Earth even during solar conjunction. [28]
The launch successfully placed the satellite into a molniya orbit. It subsequently received its Kosmos designation, and the international designator 2008-062A. [3] The United States Space Command assigned it the Satellite Catalog Number 33447. [3] Ground track of Kosmos 2446
A Molniya-M carrier rocket with a 2BL upper stage was used to perform the launch, which took place at 04:39 UTC on 23 October 2007. [3] The launch successfully placed the satellite into a molniya orbit. It subsequently received its Kosmos designation, and the international designator 2007-049A. [3]