Trajectory & orbital insertion
Ascent path is a representation — true ascent telemetry isn’t public.
Provider
United States Air Force
Provider type
Government
Orbit
Helio-N/A
Mission type
Lunar Exploration
Launch site
United States of America
Date
Fri, 26 Jan 1962 20:30:11 GMT
Orbital launch #
#145 ever
Mission
Ranger 3 was a spacecraft designed to transmit pictures of the lunar surface during the last 10 minutes prior to impacting the Moon. A malfunction in the booster guidance system resulted in excessive spacecraft speed. Ranger 3 missed the Moon by 36,800 km and is now in a heliocentric orbit.