| Mission type | Early warning |
|---|---|
| COSPAR ID | 2008-062A  |
| SATCAT no. | 33447 |
| Mission duration | 4 years |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft type | US-K |
| Launch mass | 1,900 kilograms (4,200 lb) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 2 December 2008, 05:03 (2008-12-02UTC05:03Z) UTC |
| Rocket | Molniya-M/2BL |
| Launch site | Plesetsk Cosmodrome |
| End of mission | |
| Decay date | May 6th, 2017 |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Molniya |
| Perigee altitude | 522 kilometres (324 mi) |
| Apogee altitude | 39,190 kilometres (24,350 mi) |
| Inclination | 62.8 degrees |
| Period | 704.78 minutes |
Kosmos 2446 (Russian: Космос 2446 meaning Cosmos 2446) is a Russian US-K missile early warning satellite which was launched in 2008 as part of the Russian Space Forces' Oko programme. The satellite is designed to identify missile launches using optical telescopes and infrared sensors.
Kosmos 2446 was launched from Site 16/2 at Plesetsk Cosmodrome in Russia. A Molniya-M carrier rocket with a 2BL upper stage was used to perform the launch, which took place at 05:03 UTC on 2 December 2008. The launch successfully placed the satellite into a molniya orbit. It subsequently received its Kosmos designation, and the international designator 2008-062A. The United States Space Command assigned it the Satellite Catalog Number 33447.
References
- Podvig, Pavel (2002). "History and the Current Status of the Russian Early-Warning System" (PDF). Science and Global Security. 10 (1): 21–60. Bibcode:2002S&GS...10...21P. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.692.6127. doi:10.1080/08929880212328. ISSN 0892-9882. S2CID 122901563. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 March 2012.
- ^ "US-K (73D6)". Gunter's Space Page. 8 March 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
- ^ "Cosmos 2446". National Space Science Data Centre. 20 April 2012. Retrieved 25 April 2012.
- ^ McDowell, Jonathan. "Satellite Catalog". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
- Podvig, Pavel (2 December 2008). "Launch of Cosmos-2446, a new first-generation early-warning satellite". Russian Strategic Nuclear Forces. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
See also
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| Launches are separated by dots ( • ), payloads by commas ( , ), multiple names for the same satellite by slashes ( / ). Crewed flights are underlined. Launch failures are marked with the † sign. Payloads deployed from other spacecraft are (enclosed in parentheses). | |