Kosmos 230 also known as DS-U3-S #2, was a satellite

Satellite

In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....

 which was launched by the Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

 in 1968 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik

Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik

Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik , also known as DS, was a series of satellites launched by the Soviet Union between 1961 and 1982. DS satellites were used for a number of missions, including technological and scientific research, and radar tracking targets for anti-satellite weapons and anti-ballistic...

 programme. It was a 367 kilograms (809.1 lb) spacecraft, which was built by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau

Yuzhnoye Design Bureau

Yuzhnoye Design Bureau , located in Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine, is a designer of satellites and rockets, and formerly of Soviet intercontinental ballistic missiles established by Mikhail Yangel. Yuzhnoye's OKB designation was OKB-586....

, and was used to conduct multispectral imaging of the Sun

Sun

The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...

.

Kosmos 230 was launched from Site 86/4 at Kapustin Yar

Kapustin Yar

Kapustin Yar is a Russian rocket launch and development site in Astrakhan Oblast, between Volgograd and Astrakhan. Known today as Znamensk , it was established 13 May 1946 and in the beginning used technology, material, and scientific support from defeated Germany...

, aboard a Kosmos-2I

Kosmos-2I

Kosmos-2I is the designation applied to two Soviet carrier rockets, members of the R-12 family, which were used to orbit satellites between 1961 and 1977. They were superseded by the R-14 derived Kosmos-3 and Kosmos-3M.-References:* http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/koss63s1.htm*...

 63SM carrier rocket. The launch occurred at 06:59:50 GMT on 5 July 1968, and resulted in the successful insertion of the satellite into a low Earth orbit

Low Earth orbit

A low Earth orbit is generally defined as an orbit within the locus extending from the Earth’s surface up to an altitude of 2,000 km...

. Upon reaching orbit, the satellite was assigned its Kosmos designation, and received the International Designator

International Designator

The International Designator, also known as COSPAR designation, and in the United States as NSSDC ID, is an international naming convention for satellites...

 1968-056A. The North American Aerospace Defense Command

North American Aerospace Defense Command

North American Aerospace Defense Command is a joint organization of Canada and the United States that provides aerospace warning, air sovereignty, and defense for the two countries. Headquarters NORAD is located at Peterson AFB, Colorado Springs, Colorado...

 assigned it the catalogue number

Satellite Catalog Number

The Satellite Catalog Number is a sequential 5-digit number assigned by USSPACECOM to all Earth orbiting satellites in order of identification. Before USSPACECOM, the catalog was maintained by NORAD...

 03308.

Kosmos 230 was the second of two DS-U3-S satellites to be launched, after Kosmos 166

Kosmos 166

Kosmos 166 , also known as DS-U3-S #1, was a satellite which was launched by the Soviet Union in 1967 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme. It was a spacecraft, which was built by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau, and was used to conduct multispectral imaging of the Sun.Kosmos 166 was...

. It was operated in an orbit with a perigee

Apsis

An apsis , plural apsides , is the point of greatest or least distance of a body from one of the foci of its elliptical orbit. In modern celestial mechanics this focus is also the center of attraction, which is usually the center of mass of the system...

 of 278 kilometres (172.7 mi), an apogee

Apsis

An apsis , plural apsides , is the point of greatest or least distance of a body from one of the foci of its elliptical orbit. In modern celestial mechanics this focus is also the center of attraction, which is usually the center of mass of the system...

 of 518 kilometres (321.9 mi), 48.4 degrees of inclination

Inclination

Inclination in general is the angle between a reference plane and another plane or axis of direction.-Orbits:The inclination is one of the six orbital parameters describing the shape and orientation of a celestial orbit...

, and an orbital period

Orbital period

The orbital period is the time taken for a given object to make one complete orbit about another object.When mentioned without further qualification in astronomy this refers to the sidereal period of an astronomical object, which is calculated with respect to the stars.There are several kinds of...

 of 92.5 minutes, until decaying

Orbital decay

Orbital decay is the process of prolonged reduction in the altitude of a satellite's orbit.This can be due to drag produced by an atmosphere due to frequent collisions between the satellite and surrounding air molecules. The drag experienced by the object is larger in the case of increased solar...

 from orbit and reentering the atmosphere on 2 November 1968.