| Kosmos 173 | |
| Mission Type: | ABM radar target |
| Cospar Id: | 1967-081A |
| Satcat: | 02921 |
| Mission Duration: | 117 days |
| Spacecraft Type: | DS-P1-Yu |
| Manufacturer: | Yuzhnoye |
| Launch Mass: | 325 kg |
| Launch Date: | 24 August 1967, 04:59:49 GMT |
| Launch Rocket: | Kosmos-2I 63SM |
| Launch Site: | Plesetsk, 133/1 |
| Launch Contractor: | Yuzhnoye |
| Decay Date: | 17 December 1967 |
| Orbit Epoch: | 24 August 1967 |
| Orbit Reference: | Geocentric |
| Orbit Regime: | Low Earth |
| Orbit Periapsis: | 277 km |
| Orbit Apoapsis: | 480 km |
| Orbit Inclination: | 71.0° |
| Orbit Period: | 92.3 minutes |
| Apsis: | gee |
Kosmos 173 (Russian: Космос 173 meaning Cosmos 173), also known as DS-P1-Yu No.8 was a Soviet satellite which was used as a radar calibration target for tests of anti-ballistic missiles. It was a spacecraft,[1] was built by the Yuzhnoye, and launched in 1967 as part of the Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik programme.[2]
A Kosmos-2I 63SM carrier rocket was used to launch Kosmos 173 from Site 133/1 at Plesetsk Cosmodrome.[3] The launch occurred at 04:59:49 GMT on 24 August 1967, and resulted in Kosmos 173's successful deployment into low Earth orbit.[4]
Kosmos 173 was operated in an orbit with a perigee of, an apogee of, an inclination of 71.0°, and an orbital period of 92.3 minutes.[5] It remained in orbit until it decayed and reentered the atmosphere on 17 December 1967.[6] It was the ninth of seventy nine DS-P1-Yu satellites to be launched,[2] and the eighth of seventy two to successfully reach orbit.[7]