| Meridian 1 | |
| Mission Type: | Communications |
| Operator: | VKS |
| Cospar Id: | 2006-061A |
| Satcat: | 29668 |
| Mission Duration: | less than |
| Launch Site: | Plesetsk 43/4 |
| Entered Service: | 1 February 2007 |
| Disposal Type: | Re-entered |
| Last Contact: | before |
| Orbit Epoch: | 6 July 2014 |
| Orbit Reference: | Geocentric |
| Orbit Regime: | Molniya |
| Orbit Periapsis: | 2473km (1,537miles) |
| Orbit Apoapsis: | 37882km (23,539miles) |
| Orbit Inclination: | 65 degrees |
| Orbit Period: | 717 minutes |
| Apsis: | gee |
Meridian 1 (Russian: Меридиан-1), also known as Meridian No.11L, was a Russian communications satellite. It was the first satellite to be launched as part of the Meridian system to replace the older Molniya series.
Meridian 1 was the first Russian Government satellite to be launched by a Soyuz-2 rocket. The Soyuz-2.1a configuration was used, along with a Fregat upper stage. The launch occurred from Site 43/4 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome at 08:34:44 GMT on 24 December 2006.[1]
It was constructed by ISS Reshetnev (at the time known as NPO-PM) and was believed to be based on the Uragan-M satellite bus,[2] which has also been used for GLONASS navigation satellites. It operated in a Molniya orbit with a perigee of, an apogee of, and 65° inclination.
The satellite entered service on 1 February 2007. By May 2009 it had failed, before the end of its projected lifespan. NPO-PM reported that an impact with a piece of debris had caused the spacecraft to malfunction.[3]
Meridian 1 re-entered on 6 July 2021, around 12:20 UTC.[4] [5]