NSSDC ID: 1962-043A
Sputnik 20 (1962 Alpha Tau 1) was intended to be a Venus landing mission. The Venera-type spacecraft was successfully inserted into geocentric orbit by the SL-6/A-2-e launcher. The escape stage failed and the spacecraft was stranded in Earth orbit until it re-entered the Earth's atmosphere 5 days later.
This spacecraft was originally designated Sputnik 24 in the U.S. Naval Space Command Satellite Situation Summary.
Launch Date: 1962-09-01
Launch Vehicle: Modified SS-6 (Sapwood) with 2nd Generation Upper Stage + Escape Stage
Launch Site: Tyuratam (Baikonur Cosmodrome), U.S.S.R
Mass: 6500.0 kg
Data collections from Sputnik 20
Questions or comments about this spacecraft can be directed to: Dr. David R. Williams.
Shelton, W., Soviet space exploration - the first decade, Arthur Barker Ltd., Unnumbered, London, England, 1969.
Harvey, B., The new Russian space programme from competition to collaboration, John Wiley & Sons, Chichester, England, 1996.