Mission type Ionospheric COSPAR ID 1971-109A Mission duration 1 year (design life) Inclination 82.9° Launch mass 99.5 kg Launch date 11 December 1971 | SATCAT no. 5675 Rocket Scout B-1-F S183C Period 1.6 hours Apogee 590,000 m | |
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Ariel 4, also known as UK 4, was a British ionospheric research satellite, which was operated by the Science and Engineering Research Council. It was built by the British Aircraft Corporation, and had a mass at launch of 100 kilograms (220 lb). It was launched in 1971, aboard an American rocket.
The launch of Ariel 4 occurred at 20:47:01 GMT on 11 December 1971, from Space Launch Complex 5 at the Vandenberg Air Force Base. It was conducted by the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration, using a Scout B-1 rocket. Ariel 4 was placed into a Low Earth orbit, with a perigee of 473 kilometres (294 mi), an apogee of 590 kilometres (370 mi), 82.9 degrees of inclination and an orbital period of 95.3 minutes as of 10 January 1972. It decayed from orbit on 12 December 1978.