 The Korabl-Sputnik 1 rocket depicted on a 1960 stamp | |
| Names | Sputnik 4 |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Technology |
| Operator | Soviet space program |
| Harvard designation | 1960 Epsilon 3 |
| COSPAR ID | 1960-005A |
| SATCATno. | 36 |
| Mission duration | 4 days |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft type | Vostok-1P |
| Manufacturer | OKB-1 |
| Launch mass | 4,540 kilograms (10,010 lb)[1] |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 15 May 1960, 00:00:05 (1960-05-15UTC00:00:05Z) UTC |
| Rocket | Vostok-L 8K72 |
| Launch site | Baikonur1/5 |
| End of mission | |
| Disposal | Failed deorbit c. 19 May 1960 |
| Decay date | 5 September 1962 (1962-09-06)[2] |
| Landing site | 44°05′56″N87°39′28″W / 44.098951°N 87.657689°W /44.098951; -87.657689 |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Low Earth |
| Eccentricity | 0.02879 |
| Perigee altitude | 290 kilometres (160 nmi)[1] |
| Apogee altitude | 675 kilometres (364 nmi) |
| Inclination | 65.02 degrees |
| Period | 94.25 minutes |
| Epoch | 1960-05-15 00:00:00 UTC |
Korabl-Sputnik 1[3] (Russian:Корабль Спутник 1 meaningVessel Satellite 1), also known asSputnik 4 in the West,[2] was the first test flight of theSovietVostok programme, and the firstVostok spacecraft. It was launched on May 15, 1960. Though Korabl-Sputnik 1 was uncrewed, it was a precursor to the firsthuman spaceflight,Vostok 1. Its mass was 4,540 kilograms (10,010 lb), of which 1,477 kilograms (3,256 lb) was instrumentation.[1]
The spacecraft, the first of a series of spacecraft used to investigate the means for crewed space flight, contained scientific instruments, a television system, and a self-sustaining biological cabin with a dummy of a man. It was designed to study the operation of the life support system and the stresses of flight. The spacecraft radioed both extensive telemetry and prerecorded voice communications. After four days of flight, the retro rocket was fired and the descent module was separated from its equipment module, but because the spacecraft was not in the correctflight attitude when its retro fired, the descent module did not reenter the atmosphere as planned.[2]
The descent module re-entered the atmosphere on September 5, 1962, while the equipment module re-entered on October 15, 1965.[4] A 20-pound piece of the descent module landed inManitowoc,Wisconsin in the northern United States.[5][6]
Giovanni Battista Judica Cordiglia, who set up his own amateur listening station at Torre Bert nearTurin, is reported to have claimed that radio signals were received on November 28, 1960, which could have originated from this spacecraft; the spacecraft is known to have radioed prerecorded voice communications. It has led some to believe aconspiracy theory that the spacecraft may have been crewed by one of theLost Cosmonauts.[7]
| Uncrewed |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Crewed | ||
| Cancelled | Vostok 7 to 13 (incorporated intoVoskhod programme) | |
| Related |
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