Vela 2B (also known Vela 4, Vela Hotel 4 and OPS 3674[2]) was a U.S. reconnaissance satellite for detecting explosions and nuclear tests on land and in space, the first of the second pair of Vela series satellites, taken together with Vela 2A and ERS 13 satellites. The secondary task of the ship was space research (X-rays, gamma rays, neutrons, magnetic field and charged particles).

Vela 2B
Vela satellite.
OperatorUSAF
COSPAR ID1964-040B[1]
SATCAT no.837
Spacecraft properties
ManufacturerTRW
Launch mass135 kilograms (298 lb)
Start of mission
Launch dateJuly 17, 1964, 08:22 (1964-07-17UTC08:22Z) UTC
RocketAtlas LV-3A Agena-D
Launch siteCape Canaveral LC-13
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric
RegimeHighly Elliptical
Perigee altitude94,436 kilometres (58,680 mi)
Apogee altitude11,775 kilometres (7,317 mi)
Inclination40.8°
Period100,12 hours
EpochJuly 17, 1964 (1964-07-17)
← Vela 2A
Vela 3A →
Launch of Vela 2B.

The satellite was rotationally stabilized (2 rps). The ship could work in real time mode (one data frame per second) or in data recording mode (one frame every 256 seconds). The first mode was used for the first 40% of the mission's duration. The second one was used until the next pair of Vela satellites were launched.

The ship remains in orbit around Earth.

Instruments

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. "Vela 2B". Retrieved July 28, 2019.   This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  2. ^ Antonín Vítek. "1964-040B - Vela 3". Space 40. Retrieved July 28, 2019.
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