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1960 · United States Air Force

Discoverer 11

successThor Agena A | Discoverer 11

Discoverer 11 was an American optical reconnaissance satellite. The eighth of ten operational flights of the Corona KH-1 spy satellite series, it successfully employed the first space-worthy camera film; however, Discoverer's film return capsule was lost during reentry on 16 Apr when the satellite's spin motors exploded.

Overview

Date / time
April 15, 1960 at 08:30 PM UTC
Outcome
success
Launch site
Space Launch Complex 1E
Mission
Discoverer 11
Mission type
Government/Top Secret
Orbit achieved
Low Earth Orbit
Launch vehicle
Thor Agena A →
Launch provider
United States Air Force →

Payloads deployed · 1

DISCOVERER 11
LEO