Orbiting Vehicle 1–12 was a satellite launched 27 July 1967 to measure the radiation hazard posed by solar flares. Part of the OV1 series of USAF satellites, using standardized designs and sent to orbit on decommissioned Atlas ICBMs to reduce development and launching costs, OV1-12 was launched with two other satellites in the series, OV1-11 and OV1-86, in the first triple launch of the program. Only partially successful due to an inability to remain stable in orbit, the satellite reentered the Earth's atmosphere on 22 July 1980.

Orbiting Vehicle or OV, originally designated SATAR, comprised five disparate series of standardized American satellites operated by the US Air Force, launched between 1965 and 1971. Forty seven satellites were built, of which forty three were launched and thirty seven reached orbit. With the exception of the OV3 series and OV4-3, they were launched as secondary payloads, using excess space on other missions. This resulted in extremely low launch costs and short proposal-to-orbit times. Typically, OV satellites carried scientific and/or technological experiments, 184 being successfully orbited through the lifespan of the program.