CERTIFICATE OF RE-ENTRYOrbital Register™ · by Orbital Radar™
Entry no.
1959-0005
DISCOVERER 5
DISCOVERER 5 (NORAD 18) came down while still attached to its host on 28 September 1959, after 1 month in orbit.
Official date
NORAD number
18
International designator
1959-005A
Object type
Spacecraft
Country
United States
Launched
13 Aug 1959Vandenberg
Re-entered (UTC)
28 Sep 1959UTC calendar day
Time in orbit
1 month46 days
How it ended
Came down attached to its host
Latitude range
80.0°N to 80.0°SFinal inclination 80.0°
Mass
140 kg
Operator
ARPA / CIA
Built by
LMSD/Sunnyvale
Bus
CORONA
Programme
CORONA Early
Where it came down
Latitude band its orbit allowedExact position not recorded
No position was recorded for this re-entry. Its final orbit, inclined at 80.0°, allowed a re-entry anywhere between 80.0°N and 80.0°S.
Life in orbit
1 monthDISCOVERER 5’s lowest and highest points above Earth, week by week, from its tracking history.
From the same launch
1959-005
Entered in the Orbital Register™, founding volume, September 2026.
Record version 1 · No corrections · orbitalradar.com/register/1959-0005
© 2026 Orbital Radar. Cite this entry by its number; the register itself may not be copied.
Record version 1 · No corrections · orbitalradar.com/register/1959-0005
© 2026 Orbital Radar. Cite this entry by its number; the register itself may not be copied.