13:55:00, 18 September 1977 (UTC) (1977-09-18T13:55:00Z)
Rocket
Tsyklon-2
Launch site
Tyuratam
End of mission
Decay date
24 January 1978 (1978-01-24)
Orbital parameters
Reference system
Geocentric
Eccentricity
0.00135
Perigee altitude
259 km (161 mi)
Apogee altitude
277 km (172 mi)
Inclination
65°
Period
89.6 min
Epoch
18 September 1977
Schematic of the Kosmos-954 on-board reactor
Kosmos 954 (Russian: Космос 954) was a reconnaissance satellite launched by the Soviet Union in 1977. A malfunction prevented safe separation of its onboard nuclear reactor; when the satellite reentered the Earth's atmosphere the following year, it scattered radioactive debris over northern Canada, some of the debris landing in the Great Slave Lake next to Fort Resolution, NWT.[1][2][3]
This prompted an extensive multiyear cleanup operation known as Operation Morning Light. The Canadian government billed the Soviet Union for over 6 million Canadian dollars under the terms of the Outer Space Treaty, which obligates states for damages caused by their space objects. The USSR eventually paid 3 million Canadian dollars in compensation.[4]
^Cite error: The named reference jaxa was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference ghr was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Weintz, Steve (23 November 2015). "The Cold War near-atrocity that was nobody's fault". The National Interest. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
Kosmos954 (Russian: Космос 954) was a reconnaissance satellite launched by the Soviet Union in 1977. A malfunction prevented safe separation of its onboard...
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