KH-7 16 (Gambit-1 16)

Launch Success

Liftoff Time (GMT)

19:20:00

Friday March 12, 1965

Mission Details

KH-7 16 (Gambit-1 16)

Wiki

KH-7 (Keyhole 7) managed by NRO's Program A and operated this US Air Force system boasted long focal length cameras capable of identifying and measuring properties of targets such as missiles and aircraft, surpassing the resolution of the CORONA system. The spacecraft, a 3-axis-stabilized satellite separated from the Agena-D, housed the payload, camera system, and reentry vehicle (SRV), known as the OCV (Orbital Control Vehicle), built by General Electric. The KH-7 camera featured a 112 cm diameter primary mirror and achieved ground resolutions ranging from 0.61 m to 0.91 m, utilizing strip exposure techniques for capturing images with a swath width of 22 km and strip lengths of up to 741 km from its 167-kilometer orbit.

Low Earth Orbit

Rocket

Retired
Atlas-SLV3 Agena-D

Active 1964 to 1967


Payload to Orbit

LEO: 1,825 kg

Stages

2

Launch Site

SLC-4W

Vandenberg SFB, California, USA

Fastest Turnaround

15 days 1 hour

Stats

Atlas-Agena


51st

Mission

3rd

Mission of 1965

1965


23rd

Orbital launch attempt