Status
Failure
Samos 3
Launch Time
Sat Sep 09, 1961 19:28 UTC
Sat Sep 09, 1961 19:28 UTC
Pad umbilical failed to detach properly at liftoff, cutting off electrical power to the Atlas. The vehicle fell back onto the pad and exploded.
Rocket
Mission Details
Samos 3
The Samos E or SAMOS ("Satellite and Missile Observation System") program was a relatively short-lived series of reconnaissance satellites for the United States in the early 1960s, also used as a cover for the initial development of the KH-7 Gambit system.
Payloads: 1
Low Earth Orbit
Location
SLC-3W, Vandenberg SFB, California, USA
Stats
1961
32nd orbital launch attempt
Atlas-Agena
7th mission
4th mission of 1961
4th failed mission