Kosmos 357

Kosmos 357 (Космос 357 meaning Cosmos 357), known before launch as DS-P1-Yu No.40, 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 357 was launched from Site 133/1 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome, atop a Kosmos-2I 63SM carrier rocket. The launch occurred on 19 August 1970 at 14:59:53 UTC, and resulted in the successful deployment of Kosmos 357 into low Earth orbit. Upon reaching orbit, it was assigned its Kosmos designation, and received the International Designator 1970-063A.

Orbit
Kosmos 357 was the thirty-fifth of seventy nine DS-P1-Yu satellites to be launched, and the thirty-second of seventy two to successfully reach orbit. It was operated in an orbit with a perigee of 263 km, an apogee of 433 km, 70.9 degrees of inclination, and an orbital period of 91.5 minutes. It remained in orbit until it decayed and reentered the atmosphere on 24 November 1970.