Kosmos 53 also known as DS-A1 #5 was a technology demonstration 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 1965 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. Its primary mission was to demonstrate technologies for future Soviet military satellites. It also conducted radiation

Radiation

In physics, radiation is a process in which energetic particles or energetic waves travel through a medium or space. There are two distinct types of radiation; ionizing and non-ionizing...

 experiments.

It was launched 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 They were superseded by the R-14 derived Kosmos-3 and Kosmos-3M.-References:* http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/koss63s1.htm*...

 63S1 rocket, flying Site 86/1 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...

. The launch occurred at 09:36 GMT on 30 January 1965.

Kosmos 53 was placed 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...

 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 221 kilometres (137.3 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 1172 kilometres (728.2 mi), 48.7 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 98.7 minutes. It decayed

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...

 on 12 August 1966. Kosmos 53 was the fifth of seven DS-A1 satellites to be launched, and the third to reach orbit after Kosmos 11

Kosmos 11

Kosmos 11 , also known as DS-A1 #1 was a technology demonstration satellite which was launched by the Soviet Union in 1962. It was the eleventh satellite to be designated under the Kosmos system, and the fourth spacecraft launched as part of the DS programme to successfully reach orbit, after...

 and Kosmos 17

Kosmos 17

Kosmos 17 , also known as DS-A1 #2 was a technology demonstration satellite which was launched by the Soviet Union in 1963. It was launched as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme. Its primary mission was to demonstrate technologies for future Soviet military satellites...

. The next DS-A1 launch after Kosmos 53 failed, before the last launch of the DS-A1 programme resulted in Kosmos 70

Kosmos 70

Kosmos 70 , also known as DS-A1 #7 was a technology demonstration satellite which was launched by the Soviet Union in 1965 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme. Its primary mission was to demonstrate technologies for future Soviet military satellites...

 successfully reaching orbit in July 1965. As with earlier DS-A1 satellites, the technological experiments aboard Kosmos 53 were tests of communications and navigation systems which were later used on the GLONASS

GLONASS

GLONASS , acronym for Globalnaya navigatsionnaya sputnikovaya sistema or Global Navigation Satellite System, is a radio-based satellite navigation system operated for the Russian government by the Russian Space Forces...

system.