NSSDCA/COSPAR ID: 1997-028A
Launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome on a Proton rocket, Cosmos 2344 was a new advanced Russian 20 ton imaging reconnaissance satellite the size of a school bus and resembling the Hubble Space Telescope. It was placed in an orbit of 2740 x 1500 km, with an inclination of 63.4 degrees. It repeated its ground track every 24 hours. The orbit provided a wider field of view and a slower overflight time. It supposedly was designed to provide wide area surveillance at 2-5 meter resolution. The spacecraft's powerful telescope could be pointed to multiple targets as far as 1000 km off its track. It used folded optics to achieve a 27 meter imaging focal length. It's reported to work in the visible and near infrared spectrum.
Launch Date: 1997-06-06
Launch Vehicle: Proton-K
Launch Site: Tyuratam (Baikonur Cosmodrome), Kazakhstan
Questions and comments about this spacecraft can be directed to: Coordinated Request and User Support Office