CERTIFICATE OF RE-ENTRYOrbital Register™ · by Orbital Radar™
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Entry no.
1979-0166

EXPLORER 48 (SAS 2)

EXPLORER 48 (SAS 2) (NORAD 6282) re-entered Earth’s atmosphere on 16 April 1979, after 6 years, 5 months in orbit.

Official date
NORAD number
6282
International designator
1972-091A
Object type
Spacecraft
Country
United States
Launched
15 Nov 1972San Marco platform
Re-entered (UTC)
16 Apr 1979UTC calendar day
Time in orbit
6 years, 5 months2,343 days
How it ended
Re-entered (natural decay)
Latitude range
—
Mass
174 kg
Operator
GSFC
Built by
APL
Bus
SAS
Programme
SAS

Where it came down

Not on record

No position was recorded for this re-entry. Its final orbit is not on record.

Life in orbit

6 years, 5 months

Also ended on 16 Apr 1979

1 entry
1979-0165THORAD AGENA D DEB

From the same launch

1972-091
1979-0189SCOUT D-1 R/B
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Entered in the Orbital Register™, founding volume, September 2026.
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