CANYON refers to a series of seven United States spy satellites launched between 1968 and 1977.[1] Also known as AFP-827 [2], the satellites were developed with the participation of the Air Force. The Canyon project is credited as being the first American satellite system tasked for COMINT. [3]
The satellites weighed 700 kg and were launched from Atlas/Agena D rockets into near-geosynchronous orbits. They carried large parabolic reflecting dishes, estimated at 10m in diameter. The Canyon satellites were eventually replaced with the next generation of COMINT satellites, the Vortex/Chalet series. The program remains classified.
List of Launches
| Name [4] |
Launch date |
Alt. name |
COSPAR ID |
| Canyon 1 |
6 Aug 1968 |
OPS 2222 |
1968-063A |
| Canyon 2 |
13 April 1969 |
OPS 3148 |
1969-036A |
| Canyon 3 |
1 September 1970 |
OPS 7329 |
1970-069A |
| Canyon 4 |
4 December 1971 |
AFP-827, 1971-F13 |
failed to achieve orbit |
| Canyon 5 |
20 December 1972 |
OPS 9390 |
1972-101A |
| Canyon 6 |
18 June 1975 |
OPS 4966 |
1975-055A |
| Canyon 7 |
23 May 1977 |
OPS 9751 |
1977-038A |
See also
References
- ^ Jonathan's space update No. 369 (1998-08-22) Lists U.S. SIGINT launches
- ^ Jonathan's space report No. 501 (2003-06-06) Speculation on the CANYON launches
- ^ Richelson, Jeffrey T. ed. U.S. Military Uses of Space, 1945-1991 Vol 1, Guide. National Security Archive. 1991.
- ^ List of satellite launches from Jonathan's Space Report
External links
 U.S. Reconnaissance Satellites |
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