Sputnik 40
| Mission type | Amateur radio |
|---|---|
| Operator | Aéro-Club de France AMSAT Rosaviakosmos |
| COSPAR ID | 1997-058C |
| SATCAT no. | 24958 |
| Mission duration | 1-2 months |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Launch mass | 4 kilograms (8.8 lb) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 5 October 1997, 15:08:57 UTC |
| Rocket | Soyuz-U |
| Launch site | Baikonur 1/5 |
| Deployed from | Mir |
| Deployment date | 3 November 1997, 04:05 UTC |
| End of mission | |
| Last contact | 29 December 1997 |
| Decay date | 21 May 1998 |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Low Earth |
| Perigee altitude | 376 kilometres (234 mi) |
| Apogee altitude | 382 kilometres (237 mi) |
| Inclination | 51.6 degrees |
| Epoch | 4 November 1997 |
Sputnik 40 (Russian: Спутник 40, French: Spoutnik 40), also known as Sputnik Jr, PS-2 and Radio Sputnik 17 (RS-17), was a Franco-Russian amateur radio satellite which was launched in 1997 to commemorate the fortieth anniversary of the launch of Sputnik 1, the world's first artificial satellite. A 4-kilogram (8.8 lb) one-third scale model of Sputnik 1, Sputnik 40 was deployed from the Mir space station on 3 November 1997. Built by students, the spacecraft was constructed at the Polytechnic Laboratory of Nalchik in Kabardino-Balkaria, whilst its transmitter was assembled by Jules Reydellet College in Réunion with technical support from AMSAT-France.