Thor Agena A | Discoverer 2

Discoverer II successfully reached orbit and took photos of Earth. However, when the capsule with the data was ejected in order to re-enter the atmosphere there was a timer malfunction meaning it seperated too early and landed over the North Pole rather than the intended target of Hawaii. The capsule was never recovered.

Mission Details

  • Launch date: April 13, 1959 at 09:18 PM UTC
  • Launch vehicle: Thor Agena A
  • Operator: United States Air Force
  • Launch site: Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
  • Mission type: Government/Top Secret