Kosmos 2368

Kosmos 2368 (Russian: Космос 2368 meaning Cosmos 2368) was a Russian US-K missile early warning satellite which was launched in 1999 as part of the Russian Space Forces' Oko programme. The satellite was designed to identify missile launches using optical telescopes and infrared sensors.^[2]

Kosmos 2368

Mission type	Early warning
COSPAR ID	1999-073A
SATCAT no.	26042
Mission duration	4 years [1]
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type	US-K[2]
Launch mass	1,900 kilograms (4,200 lb)[3]
Start of mission
Launch date	27 December 1999, 19:12 (1999-12-27UTC19:12Z) UTC
Rocket	Molniya-M/2BL[2]
Launch site	Plesetsk Cosmodrome[2][3]
End of mission
Deactivated	2001/2002
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Molniya [2]
Perigee altitude	576 kilometres (358 mi)[4]
Apogee altitude	39,776 kilometres (24,716 mi)[4]
Inclination	62.8 degrees[4]
Period	717.74 minutes[4]

Kosmos 2368 was launched from Site 16/2 at Plesetsk Cosmodrome in Russia.^[5] A Molniya-M carrier rocket with a 2BL upper stage was used to perform the launch, which took place at 19:12 UTC on 27 December 1999.^[3] The launch successfully placed the satellite into a molniya orbit. It subsequently received its Kosmos designation, and the international designator 1999-073A.^[3] The United States Space Command assigned it the Satellite Catalog Number 26042.^[3] The satellite (along with Kosmos 2340, Kosmos 2351, and Kosmos 2342) were lost after a 2001 fire destroyed the ground control building located at the Serpukhov-15 military base resulting in the loss of orbital control.^[6]