[2] The objectives of the flight were to test vehicle performance and guidance and to investigate the nature and effects of micrometeoroids on the spacecraft systems.

The scientific instrumentation consisted of cadmium sulfide-cell, wire-grid, piezoelectric, pressurized-cell, and foil-type micrometeoroid detectors.

Weighing 86 kg (190 lb), including its fourth stage and transition section, its objective was to test the performance of a Scout launch vehicle and its guidance system and to investigate the nature and effects of space flight on micrometeoroids.

Its payload was a 61 × 192 cm (24 × 76 in) cylinder, almost covered by five types of micometeoroid impact detectors, two transmitters, solar cells and nickel-cadmium batteries.

When a micrometeoroid penetrated the opaque aluminized film, the rays from the Sun would either fall on the cell or be reflected on it from the mirrorized walls.

The first configuration, which was used for high and low sensitivity detection, consisted of a pair of impact-sensitive stainless steel plates mounted on the conical portion of the satellite forward shell.

The plates, which had a total geometric area of 0.142 m2, each had an attached transducer, as well as signal conditioning, impact-event counting, and count-storage circuitry.

The measured impact flux rates were substantially higher than those obtained by earlier meteoroid experiments and probably contained false counts due to aerodynamic mechanical perturbances and temperature effects on impact-sensing transducer elements resulting from the low initial perigee.

By means of a pressure-activated switch on each cell, the pressure loss caused by a micrometeoroid impact could be detected and telemetered.

A large injection-angle error caused the spacecraft's orbital lifetime to be only 2.5 days, but information from the experiment was telemetered and recorded for 29 passes.