Kosmos 334

Kosmos 334 (Космос 334 meaning Cosmos 334), known before launch as DS-P1-Yu No.31, was a Soviet satellite which was launched in 1970 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme. It was a 325 kg spacecraft, which was built by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau, and was used as a radar calibration target for anti-ballistic missile tests.

Launch
Kosmos 334 was launched from Site 133/1 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome, atop a Kosmos-2I 63SM carrier rocket. The launch occurred on 23 April 1970 at 13:20:00 UTC, and resulted in the successful deployment of Kosmos 334 into low Earth orbit. Upon reaching orbit, it was assigned its Kosmos designation, and received the International Designator 1970-033A.

Orbit
Kosmos 334 was the thirty-first of seventy nine DS-P1-Yu satellites to be launched, and the twenty-ninth of seventy two to successfully reach orbit. It was operated in an orbit with a perigee of 259 km, an apogee of 430 km, 70.9 degrees of inclination, and an orbital period of 91.4 minutes. It remained in orbit until it decayed and reentered the atmosphere on 9 August 1970.