Iridium 33

Iridium 33

A mockup of an Iridium satellite
Mission type	Communication
Operator	Iridium Satellite LLC
COSPAR ID	1997-051C
Spacecraft properties
Bus	LM-700A
Manufacturer	Lockheed Martin
Start of mission
Launch date	14 September 1997
Rocket	Proton-K/DM2
Launch site	Baikonur 81/23
Contractor	ILS
End of mission
Destroyed	10 February 2009, 16:56 UTC Collision with Kosmos 2251
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Low Earth

Iridium 33 was a communications satellite launched by the United States for Iridium Communications. It was launched into low Earth orbit from Site 81/23 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 01:36 GMT on 14 September 1997, by a Proton-K carrier rocket with a Block DM2 upper stage.^[1][2] It was operated in Plane 3 of the Iridium satellite constellation, with an ascending node of 230.9°.^[1]

Destruction

On 10 February 2009, at 16:56 GMT, Kosmos 2251 (a retired Strela satellite) and Iridium 33 collided, resulting in the destruction of both spacecraft.^[3] NASA reported that a large amount of space debris was produced by the collision.^{[4][5][6] [7]}

References

1. Wade, Mark. "Iridium". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Retrieved 2009-02-12.
2. Wade, Mark. "Proton". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Retrieved 2009-02-12.
3. Iannotta, Becky (2009-02-11). "U.S. Satellite Destroyed in Space Collision". Space.com. Retrieved 2009-02-11.
4. "2 orbiting satellites collide 500 miles up". Associated Press. 2009-02-11. Retrieved 2009-02-11.
5. "Google Earth KMZ file of the debris". John Burns. 2009-03-05. Retrieved 2010-11-25.
6. "U.S. Space debris environment and operational updates" (PDF). NASA. 2011-02-07. Retrieved 2011-08-25.
7. "Javascript visualisation of Iridium 33 debris".