| Kosmos 348 | |
| Mission Type: | Aeronomy Auroral |
| Cospar Id: | 1970-044A |
| Spacecraft Type: | DS-U2-GK |
| Manufacturer: | Yuzhnoye |
| Launch Date: | UTC |
| Launch Rocket: | Kosmos-2I 63SM |
| Launch Site: | Plesetsk 133/1 |
| Orbit Reference: | Geocentric |
| Orbit Regime: | Low Earth |
| Orbit Inclination: | 71 degrees |
| Orbit Period: | 92.4 minutes |
| Apsis: | gee |
Kosmos 348 (ru|Космос 348 meaning Cosmos 348), also known as DS-U2-GK No.2, was a Soviet satellite which was launched in 1970 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme. It was a 357kg (787lb) spacecraft, which was built by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau, and was used to study the density of air in the upper atmosphere, and investigate aurorae.[1]
A Kosmos-2I 63SM carrier rocket was used to launch Kosmos 348 into low Earth orbit. The launch took place from Site 133/1 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome,[2] with liftoff occurring at 04:59:57 UTC on 13 June 1970. Kosmos 348 was successfully inserted into orbit.[3] On reaching orbit, the satellite was assigned its Kosmos designation and received the International Designator 1970-044A.[4] The North American Aerospace Defense Command assigned it the catalogue number 04413.
Kosmos 348 was the second of two DS-U2-GK satellites to be launched.[1] [5] It was operated in an orbit with a perigee of, an apogee of, 71 degrees of inclination and an orbital period of 92.4 minutes. It decayed from orbit within a few weeks of its launch, re-entering the atmosphere on 25 July 1970.[6]