Kosmos-3 rocket series
The
launch vehicles known today as Kosmos-1, 3, 3M and 3MU can be considered
siblings, since they all derived from the
R-14
intermediate-range ballistic
missile.
According
to the official history of the KB Yuzhnoe, (the vehicle's original developer),
the preliminary design of a two-stage 65S3 launch vehicle was completed
in April 1961. The R-14 ballistic missile served as the first stage of
the future launcher. The S3 upper stage was developed from scratch.
On October
31, 1961, the government officially approved the work on the 65S3 vehicle
as the launcher for
Meteor
, Strela and Pchela satellites.
In November
1962, before completing the development of the 65S3 vehicle, OKB-586 passed
the serial production of the rocket to OKB-10 in Krasnoyarsk-26 (Eastern
Siberia), now known as Zheleznogorsk. The first 14 rockets of this type were manufactured at Site 2 of Krasmashzavod in Krasnoyarsk-26 and around 40 follow-on vehicles were built at the main campus of the same plant. Around 1970,
the serial production of the Kosmos-3M vehicle and all its further
modifications
were transferred to PO Polyot in Eastern-Siberian town of Omsk. A total of 750 Kosmos-3M rockets and its derivatives would ultimately be manufactured during its 45-year service life. (
555
)
Kosmos-3
family overview:
Kosmos-1
|
65S3
|
R-14
|
SL-8
|
C-1
|
OKB-586,
OKB-10
|
Kosmos-3
|
11K65
(8K65S3)
|
R-14U
|
SL-8
|
C-1
|
OKB-10
|
Kosmos-3M
|
11K65M
(8K65S5)
|
R-14U
|
SL-8
|
C-1
|
OKB-10
|
Vzlet
(Kosmos-3MU)
|
11K65MU
|
R-14U
|
SL-8
|
C-1
|
PO
Polyot
|
Known technical specifications of the Kosmos-3
rocket:
Length
of the vehicle
|
31.5
- 32.4 meters
|
Diameter
|
2.4
meters
|
Weight
(fueled)
|
109
tons
|
First
launch
|
1964
|
Launch
sites
|
Baikonur
(
Site 41
, PU-15), Plesetsk (
Site 132
),
Kapustin
Yar
(Site 107, PU-1)
|
|
Fuel
|
|
Oxidizer
|
Nitrogen
tetroxide
|
Stage
1 burn time
|
~170
seconds from takeoff
|
1st
stage propulsion
|
2 (two)
two-chamber RD-216 (8D513) engines (combined make 8D514 four chamber
engine with two turbo-pumps)
|
|
Fuel
|
|
Oxidizer
|
Nitrogen
tetroxide
|
Stage
2 burn time
|
around
27 minutes (including around 20-minute period of very low thrust)
|
2nd
stage propulsion
|
RD-219
|
Payload
from
Plesetsk
, inclination 66, 74 and 83 degrees
|
- 1,400
kilograms to 250-kilometer near-polar orbit
- 950
kilograms to 1,000-kilometer circular orbit
- 500
kilograms to 1,700-kliometer circular orbit
|
The Kosmos-3
development team:
Original
design
|
OKB-586
|
Mikhail
Yangel
|
Dnepropetrovsk,
Ukraine
|
Development
|
Branch
2, OKB-1 (OKB-10)
|
M.
F. Reshetnev
|
Krasnoyarsk-26 (Zheleznogorsk, Eastern Siberia)
|
Initial
production
|
Zavod
No. 1001
|
A. E. Mitrofanov
|
Krasnoyarsk-26 (Zheleznogorsk, Eastern Siberia)
|
Serial
production and upgrades
|
PO
Polyot
|
-
|
Omsk
(Eastern Siberia)
|
Propulsion
systems
|
OKB-456
|
Valentin
Glushko
|
Moscow
|
Test
launches: Kosmos-1 (65S3), Kosmos-3 (11K65)
The initial
test launches of the 65S3 vehicle were planned at the
NIIP-5
test range
near Tyuratam (later Baikonur) in today's Kazakhstan.
The 2nd Test
Directorate, which was normally responsible for testing rockets
designed at OKB-586 in Dnepropetrovsk, was assigned to conduct the test launch program.
The launch pad No. 15 (PU-15), previously used for the
R-16
tests at Site 41 of
NIIP-5
was refurbished
for the new vehicle.
On August
18, 1964, the first 65S3 vehicle blasted off from Baikonur, successfully
delivering three dummy satellites, representing Strela communications
spacecraft. They were officially identified as Kosmos-38-40. Until 1968,
total 14 launches were conducted from Baikonur. Retrospectively, the 65S3
vehicle was referred as Kosmos-1 in the official Russian sources. A modified
version, whose launches started in
Baikonur
in 1966, had a totally new designation: 11K65. This version was later
identified as Kosmos-3. (
76
)
Operational
history: Kosmos-3M (11K65M)
On May 15,
1967, yet another version of the Kosmos-3 launcher blasted off from Plesetsk
for the first time, carrying Kosmos-158 onboard. The rocket featured an
upgraded second stage and it was designated 11K65M. The major modification
of the upper stage included its capability to reduce thrust of the main
engine dramatically and later throttle it back. During the low-thrust
burn, the gas-generators onboard the stage would direct its exhaust through
the special nozzles, providing low level thrust to the vehicle. The feature
was used during the release of multiple payloads from the second stage.
On Feb. 23, 1970, the 11K65M later identified as Kosmos-3M, had been officially declared operational along with its military payload. (
555
) Since April
1970, this vehicle, regularly
delivered groups of eight satellites from Plesetsk in a single launch.
On January
26, 1973, the first Kosmos-3M launcher blasted off from
Kapustin Yar
.
Among payloads,
the Cosmos 3M was delivering into orbit were
Tselina-O
spacecraft for electronic intelligence; Strela 1M, 2M and Tsyklon for
military navigation and communications; Taifun-1 and 2 for calibration
of defense radars; targets for anti-satellite weapon tests; Tsikada navigation
satellites.
On July 26,
1973, a fully fueled Kosmos-3M rocket exploded on the launch pad 133 in
Plesetsk killing nine people from the launch team.
As of January
1, 1996, 389 Kosmos-3 vehicles were launched, 366 of them successfully.
On
November 21, 2000, Kosmos-3M booster failed to deliver QuickBird satellite
into orbit after launch from Plesetsk. According to the radar data, the
second stage of the launcher failed to form the final orbit. The commission
led by Lt. General Kovalenko, chief of Cosmodrome Plesetsk, started investigating
the matter, but quit few days later.
Rosaviacosmos
and Russian Strategic Missile Forces formed the new commission to investigate
the accident. The original investigation team, after reviewing 1,521 seconds
of the launch sequence, failed to find the problem with the vehicle. However,
the data received by the Russian ground control station have a 400-second
blackout period, which could not be analyzed. Lt. General Valeriy Grin,
the Deputy Chief Commander of the Strategic Missile Forces, led the new
commission.
Vzlet
(Kosmos-3MU)
PO Polyot
considered the new version of the Kosmos-3M booster, known as Vzlet. Another
designation, which appeared in press was Kosmos-3MU. The new digital control
system would replace the old one. It would allow more precise fueling
of the rocket for each individual mission and more complete consumption
of the propellant in flight. In combination with bigger propellant tanks,
these improvements could increase the payload by some 25 percent.
The liftoff
mass of the rocket was expected to be 111 tons and length would be 33.1 meters. The rocket would be able to deliver 1,500 kilograms to a 200-kilometer circular polar orbit.
In total, eight different versions of the Kosmos launch vehicles had been developed, according to the official statistics. (
502
)
In the 21st century: End of an era
In 2006, there were persistent reports that the production of the Kosmos-3M rocket in Omsk would cease with the merger of its manufacturer, PO Polyot, with Khrunichev enterprise, and the former organization's switch to the work on the
Angara
booster stages. However the official statement from Roskosmos released on Aug. 28, 2006, said that the agreement between Khrunichev and PO Polyot reached on August 25 would ensure that both elements of Angara boosters would be built at the facility alongside the Kosmos-3M vehicle, whose production would be resumed. At the same time, further upgrades of the Kosmos-3M rocket would be conducted, Roskosmos said. However, Russian military opposed any Kosmos-3M missions beyond expending already produced stockpile of rockets. Speaking at a conference of the rocket industry in 2006, Deputy Chief of
Plesetsk Cosmodrome
, Aleksandr Ivanov, said that around 10 remaining Kosmos-3M vehicles would be expended by 2012, discontinuing their use. By 2015, the entire fleet of launchers operating from Plesetsk would use "clean" propellants, Ivanov added.
In 2007, Vladimir Popovkin, the commander of the Russian Space Forces, KVR, echoed that position, telling the official
ITAR-TASS
news agency that toxic propellant employed in the Kosmos-3M rocket had prompted the Russian military to drop any plans of using it beyond already built vehicles. Popovkin added that the
Rockot boosters
, (also burning toxic propellant) would be used to fill the gap between the last launch of the Kosmos-3M and the introduction of the
Angara family of rockets
. "We do not share (the position) of the federal space agency to attempt to upgrade the Kosmos-3M launch vehicles," Popovkin added. Since Russian military operated the Kosmos-3M launch facilities in Plesetsk and the rocket carried primarily
military payloads
, there was little doubt, whose position would ultimately prevail.
During 2011, Russian space officials said that the two remaining Kosmos-3M rockets would fly in 2012, concluding the production and use of this family of rockets by 2013. (
502
)
Missions of the Kosmos-3M launch vehicle in the 21st century
2001
June 8:
The Kosmos-3M launcher returned to flight on June
8, with the successful launch of a
military
satellite
.
The two-stage rocket blasted off from Russia's Northern Cosmodrome in
Plesetsk at 19:12 Moscow Time (11:12 p.m. EDT) on June 8.
According
to the Russian Space Forces, the
spacecraft, announced as Kosmos-2378, successfully reached the orbit.
The parameters of its orbit (1,023 by 981 kilometers, inclination 82.9
degrees toward the Equator) suggest that the satellite belongs to the
Tsyklon-B navigation and communications network, comprised of the
Parus
("Sail") spacecraft.
The
Kosmos-3M was grounded since November 2000, when the rocket failed to
deliver a US QuickBird imaging satellite, due to the second stage failure.
The
latest launch was 402nd for the Kosmos-3M, since the rocket entered
service in 1967.
The
June 8 launch was delayed since April 27 by problems with the
steering control system in the engines of the second stage comprising the Kosmos-3M launcher.
2002 May
28:
The
Kosmos-3M booster delivered a navigation satellite after the launch from
Russia's northern cosmodrome in Plesetsk. The payload, officially identified
as Kosmos-2389, apparently belongs to the Tsikada series of navigation
satellites.
2002 July
8:
The Kosmos-3M booster delivered two classified satellites after
a successful launch from Russia's northern cosmodrome in
Plesetsk
.
The launch took place at 10:36 Moscow Time.
The payload
was officially identified only as Kosmos-2390 and Kosmos-2391, however
the Russian press reported that the spacecraft belong to the series of
the Strela communications network, providing secret communications for
the Russian authorities.
2002 Sept.
26:
The Kosmos-3M booster delivered a Nadezhda-M ("Hope")
navigation satellite on September 26, 2002, after the launch from Russia's
northern cosmodrome in
Plesetsk
.
The blastoff
took place at 19:30 Moscow Time, the Russian Space Forces announced. The
Nadezhda-M satellite entered a 987.4 by 1,022.1-kilometer orbit with the
inclination 83 degrees toward the Equator.
The Nadezhda-M
carries COSPAS-SARSAT equipment designed to relay distress signals from
the ships around the world.
According to
official statistics it was the 405th launch of the Kosmos-3M-type booster
and the 1934th space launch from Plesetsk.
2002
Nov. 28:
The Kosmos-3M booster delivered Algerian and Russian satellites
into a sun-synchronous orbit, after the launch from Russia's northern
cosmodrome in
Plesetsk
.
A two-stage
vehicle blasted off at 09:07 Moscow Time on Nov. 28, 2002, carrying AlSat-1
remote-sensing satellite for the Algerian government and the Mozhaets
experimental satellite, designed for the training of the Russian military
academy students.
The AlSat
spacecraft, is a part of the
Disaster
Monitoring Constellation, DMS, network,
developed
by
SSTL company of England.
According
to the Russian Space Forces, both satellites successfully reached a 701
x 680-kilometer orbit.
2003
June 4:
The Russian military launched
a
classified payload
from country's northern cosmodrome in
Plesetsk
on June 4, 2003. The Kosmos-3 booster blasted off at 23:23 Moscow Time
and the spacecraft was expected to reach its final orbit at 00:27 Moscow
Time on June 5, 2003.
The
payload was officially identified as Kosmos-2398. Although no information
on the purpose of the spacecraft had been released, it is known that the
Kosmos-3 booster is routinely used to deliver low-orbital navigation and
communication satellites for the Russian military.
2003
Aug. 19:
The Kosmos-3M rocket launched a pair of military satellites
from Russia's northern cosmodrome.
The launch
vehicle blasted off from
Plesetsk Cosmodrome
at 14:50 Moscow Time, carrying two spacecraft, most likely navigation
satellites. After reaching the low Earth orbit, payloads were officially
designated as Kosmos-2400 and Kosmos-2401.
This mission
was originally planned for the last decade of August 2003, but was, apparently,
advanced by a day or two.
2003
Sept.
27:
After a 24-hour delay due to technical problems, Kosmos-3M rocket successful
launched a cluster of six payloads from Russia's northern cosmodrome in
Plesetsk
.
The
launch vehicle blasted off at 10:12 Moscow Time on Sept. 27, carrying
South-Korean KAISTSAT-4 spacecraft equipped with Spectroscopy of Plasma
Evolution from Astrophysical Radiation, ultraviolet instrument, SPEAR;
Turkish BILSAT-1; Nigerian NIGERIASAT-1, Turkish BILSAT-1 and UK-DMC from
the UK-built Disaster Monitoring Constellation, DMC; and two Russian experimental
military satellites Mozhaets-4 and Larets.
The
separation of the payloads from the second stage of the launch vehicle
into solar synchronous orbit was expected to start at 10:46 Moscow Time
on Sept. 27, 2003.
2004 July
22:
Russian military orbited a
classified
payload
from the nation's northern launch facility.
The Kosmos-3M
rocket blasted off from
Site 132
in
Plesetsk
on July 22, 2004 at 21:46:28 Moscow
Time, press service of the Russian Space Troops, VKS, said. A classified
military payload was successfully inserted into its orbit at 22:49:30
Moscow Time.
Kosmos-3M
rockets are routinely used to deliver navigation and low-orbit communications
satellites for the Russian military.
2004
Sept. 23
, at 19:07 Moscow Time: the Kosmos-3M rocket launched
two
military payloads
from
Plesetsk
.
According
to the Russian Space Forces, KVR, a pair of satellites successfully reached
its orbits at 20:01 Moscow Time. They were officially designated as Kosmos-2408
and Kosmos-2409.
The
mission was previously planned for September 21, 2004, however it was
delayed for 24 hours by technical problems and then by strong winds at
the launch site.
2005 Jan.
20:
For the second time in a month, a Russian rocket apparently delivered
its payload into a lower-than-planned orbit. The Kosmos-3M launcher blasted
off from Russia's northern cosmodrome in
Plesetsk
at 06:00 Moscow Time on Jan. 20, 2005, carrying the
Parus
navigation satellite
for the Russian military along with a "piggyback"
Universitetsky-Tatyana
spacecraft for the Moscow State University, MGU.
The Kosmos-3M
launcher used in the mission also carried an enlarged payload fairing
designed to accommodate the three-meter wide parabolic antenna of the SAR-Lupe
reconnaissance satellites, developed for the German military and slated
for launch on a future mission of the Kosmos-3M rocket in 2005. At the
time of the launch, OHB-System AG in Bremen was integrating the SAR-Lupe
satellites. The first of five flight satellites has already been fitted
with the synthetic aperture radar supplied by Alcatel Space, Toulouse,
and Tesat Spacecom, Backnang, for capturing image data.
The SAR-Lupe
radar-image-based reconnaissance system being built for the German Federal
Armed Forces comprises five satellites and a ground station for controlling
the satellites and evaluating the downloaded data. Located in Gelsdorf,
the ground station has now very largely been completed.
According
to official Russian sources, both satellites successfully reached orbit
and separated from the upper stage of the launch vehicle at 07:02 Moscow
Time on Jan. 20, 2005. However, ground observations found the
Parus
spacecraft,
officially identified as
Kosmos-2414
, in a 909.5 by 966.7-kilometer orbit
with the inclination of 82.9 degrees toward the Equator. In the past,
satellites of this type would be inserted into orbits with an apogee of
around 1,000 kilometers above the Earth surface. Lower altitude could
be caused by a premature shutdown or the lack of thrust in the propulsion
system of the launch vehicle.
However,
official Russian sources later claimed that both satellites were successfully
delivered. The Tatyana satellite failed unexpectedly in March 2007, possibly as a result of a collision with a piece of space junk.
2005
Oct. 27:
A Russian
rocket successfully orbited a cluster of eight international payloads,
however some run into trouble soon after launch.
The Kosmos-3M
No. 104 launcher blasted off from Site 132 of Russia's northern cosmodrome
in
Plesetsk
on
October 27, 2005 at 10:52:36 Moscow Time. It carried eight payloads
for several countries intended for a sun-synchronous orbit with the
altitude of 690 kilometers and the inclination of 98.2 degrees toward
the Equator:
Mozhaets-5
|
90
|
1,011x1,019x920
|
PO
Polyot, Russia
|
Mozhaisky
Academy, Russia
|
Experimental,
flight control training
|
Sinah
1
|
160
|
800x1,300x1,600
|
PO
Polyot, Russia
|
Applied
Research Institute, Iran
|
Remote
sensing, Reconnaissance
|
China-DMC
|
150
|
900x770x912
|
SSTL,
UK
|
Beijing
Landview Mapping Information Technology, China
|
Remote
sensing
|
TopSat
|
115
|
865x781x1,495
|
SSTL,
UK
|
QinetiQ,
UK
|
Remote
sensing
|
SSETI
Express
|
62
(77)
|
1,030x600x580
|
ESA
|
ESA
|
Education
|
Ncube-2
|
1
|
100x100x100
|
Universities
of Norway
|
Andoya
Rocket Range, Norway
|
Education
|
UWE-1
|
1
|
100x100x100
|
University of Würzburg, Germany
|
University of Würzburg, Germany
|
Education
|
XI-V
|
1
|
100x100x100
|
University of Tokyo in Japan
|
University of Tokyo in Japan
|
Education
|
Upon reaching
the orbit, the payload separation sequence was scheduled to take place
between 11:27:18 and 11:27:24.
The
Mozhaets-5
spacecraft
was expected to establish contact with the Russian military ground
control network,
GITsIU KS, at 12:27:21 Moscow Time.
Although
all spacecraft successfully reached the orbit, on October 28, Russian
space forces said that "interruption in the separation algorithm"
between the spacecraft and the launch vehicle adapter took place "affecting"
the establishment of the communications with the satellite. Attempts
were reportedly under way to restore control over the spacecraft.
Later reports
clarified that the Mozhaets-5 spacecraft has never separated from the
upper stage of the launch vehicle and tumbled in orbit along with it.
In
the meantime, on October 27 at 10:29 CEST, the ground control
center at the University
in Aalborg (DK) received the first signals from the
SSETI
Express
satellite.
As its was planned, 64 minutes after the launch,
Ncube,
XI-V
and
UWE-V
pico-satellites were successfully deployed from SSETI Express and as
of October 28, 2005,
signals from XI-V
and
UWE-1 have
been successfully
received at their respective ground stations, however owners of the
Ncube-2
heard nothing at the time.
However
at 22:20 CEST, the spacecraft went into a safe mode due to an undervoltage
caused by battery charging
problems,
the European Space Agency, ESA said. According to the ESA's official
statement, the operations team was working actively to resume nominal
operations of
the satellite
and
was receiving
tremendous
help
in the
process from
the amateur radio community. At the time of the anomaly, many mission
milestones had already successfully been met.
Before
the mission experienced several delays primarily by problems with payloads.
Their delivery to the launch site was scheduled around
July 22, 2005. (Delayed from Aug. 25, Sept. 27, Sept. 30, 2005. (Delayed
by
technical
problems
onboard Iranian Sina-1 satellite built by NPO Polyot.)
2005 Dec. 21:
Russian space forces launched a dual payload from the nation's northern cosmodrome in Plesetsk. The Kosmos-3M (No. 232) rocket blasted off from Pad 1 at Site 132 at 22: 34 Moscow Time on December 21, 2005, carrying the
Gonets-1M
("messenger") low-orbit communications satellite for the Russian government agencies and a classified military payload, which was not given any designation in the official statements immediately following the launch. Satellites were later identified as belonging to a brand-new
Rodnik
series.
The representative of the Russian space forces said that the launch went flawlessly and the spacecraft were expected to separate from the rocket at 23:28 Moscow Time, however the event could not be confirmed until the payloads entered the communications range with ground control stations at 00:28 Moscow Time on December 22, 2005, or almost two hours after the launch.
The mission was previously scheduled for Dec. 15, 2005 and Dec. 20, 2005.
2006 April 22:
Russian Strategic Missile Forces, RVSN, tested a new platform for nuclear warheads, which reportedly increases the chances of the weapon to penetrate enemy missile defenses.
The K65M-R booster rocket, commonly known as Kosmos-3M launch vehicle, blasted off from the
Kapustin Yar test range
in the evening of April 22, 2006 and flew in the direction of the Sary Shagan antimissile test site. The rocket lifted a
test version of the upper stage
, designed to carry multiple warheads onboard the latest generation of the
Russian strategic weapons
-- the
Topol-M
ICBM and the Bulava
submarine-based missile
.
According to Russian military officials, the new upper stage is capable of maneuvering in flight, carries fake warheads designed to confuse missile defense radar, and is less detectable than its predecessors.
A well-informed Kommersant newspaper, reported that the first test of the upper stage was conducted on November 1, 2005, when the previous-generation Topol missile was launched from the mobile launcher deployed in Kapustin Yar. That launch had also fulfilled the goal of certifying old Topol missiles for the extended service. However, since only a single Topol is available for certification launches each year, the next test of the upper stage was carried onboard the K65M-R booster. Based on the Kosmos-3M space launcher, the vehicle was specifically modified for suborbital missions and as many as 300 were launched toward the Sary Shagan antimissile site.
Russia launches a German spy satellite
Published: 2006 Dec. 19; updated Dec 21
A military space mission unimaginable during the Cold War took off from Russia's northern cosmodrome.
The Kosmos-3M rocket lifted off from the
Plesetsk
launch site at 15:00:19 Central European Time (17:00:19 Moscow Time) on December 19, 2006, carrying the SAR-Lupe-1 reconnaissance satellite for the German military. The payload successfully reached its orbit an hour later, according to its developer, OHB-System AG of Bremen, Germany. The first contact between the control center and the satellite was established at 16:04 Central European Time on Dec. 19, 2006, the company said.
A preliminary review of all main functions showed that the satellite could enter normal operations. At the beginning of the mission, the control over the satellite was managed by the German Space Agency, DLR, in Oberpfaffenhofen. The ground station of the German Armed Forces in Gelsdorf was tracking the satellite at the same time and was expected to assume operative responsibility for it in mid January 2007, at which point in time it would start collecting SAR radar images.
The 770-kilogram, 4 by 3 by 2-meter spacecraft became the first of a five-bird constellation, designed to provide German Federal Armed Forces with radar imagery for surveillance purposes. The German Ministry of Defense (BMVg) and the Federal Office of Defense Technology and Procurement, referred to as BWB (Bundesamt für Wehrtechnik und Beschaffung), funded the project.
All five identical SAR-Lupe satellites sport the synthetic aperture radar, SAR, with a three-meter-long antenna and a folding probe. It is capable of delivering photos with the resolution of less than one meter in any weather, day or night. Operating in the 500-kilometer orbit passing over Earth poles in three different orbital planes, satellites would be able to photograph practically any location on the planet from 80 degrees North latitude to 80 degrees South latitude, on a 36-hour notice. The system would be able to generate more than 30 images per day, each covering five square kilometer area.
SAR-Lupe satellites were designed to transmit telemetry and data via an X-band transmitter in encrypted S-band radio waves. The spacecraft can communicate directly with ground control stations or via inter-satellite network.
OHB has established a ground station in Gelsdorf near Bonn for controlling the satellite and evaluating image data. The facility was declared operational on July 28, 2004. Before the first launch, the site was to be used for training of future users of the satellite.
The SAR-Lupe system was conceived at OHB-System AG around 1998. On December 17, 2001, BWB signed a 300-million Euro contract with the company to develop the system. For the project, OHB-System formed a consortium including a number of European aerospace firms, among them Alcatel Space of Toulouse, France; Carlo Gavazzi Space of Milan, Italy, and Saab Ericsson of Goteborg, Sweden.
On 30 July 2002, Germany and France signed a treaty, envisioning SAR-Lupe satellites and the French Helios optical reconnaissance satellite operating jointly to form a common reconnaissance system for the European Union.
The SAR-Lupe-1 satellite is one of few Western military payloads carried by Russian rockets. In 1995, Russian
Molniya rocket
delivered a small US satellite for military experiments in space. Also, Russia launched Israeli and Iranian Earth-watching satellites, with potential military roles; ironically, on the opposing sides of the Middle East conflict.
The launch of SAR-Lupe-1 was originally expected in 2005, but technical problems in the development of the satellite pushed the mission to April 2006, and Dec. 5, 2006. The project managers considered
Rockot
and
Dnepr
launchers for the mission, but ultimately decided in favor of Kosmos-3M.
To accommodate a large radar antenna onboard the satellite, a standard payload fairing of the Kosmos-3M launch vehicle was modified for the mission. The modified fairing was tested in flight in the January 2005 launch of the Kosmos-3M booster.
Future SAR-Lupe launches were expected to follow roughly every six months. The completed network was scheduled to operate for at least 10 years.
Russia launches a satellite for the German military
Published: 2007 July 3
Russian rocket lifted a second satellite for the network of all-weather eyes in the sky operated by the German military.
The Kosmos-3M rocket blasted off from Pad 1 at
Site 132
in
Plesetsk
on July 2, 2007 at 23:38:41 Moscow Time, carrying the second SAR-Lupe satellite.
According to the press-service of the Russian space forces, Titov Main Testing and Control Center started tracking the vehicle at 23:40:00 Moscow Time and the launch went smoothly. The payload was expected to reach the final orbit at 00:07:01 Moscow Time on July 3, 2007, while outside the range of the Russian ground control stations.
The launch was conducted under the supervision of the Commander of the space forces Col. General Vladimir Popovkin. The mission was originally scheduled for July 1, 2007 at 23:38:16, however
high winds at the altitude of 13 kilometers exceeded allowable limits, forcing a 24-hour delay.
On July 3, 2007, the manufacturer of the satellite OHB-System AG said that the first signals from the satellite were picked up by the ground station Kerguelen in the Southern Indian Ocean at 22:41 hours (CEST), with direct contact established between the control center and the satellite as planned 92 minutes after launch. Preliminary testing have indicated that SAR-Lupe-2 was working perfectly in its orbit. The activation of the satellite started on the night of July 2. Preliminary data showed that the antenna boom onboard the satellite was deployed.
According to OHB-System AG, the control over the satellite was in the hands of the German Space Agency DLR in Oberpfaffenhofen. The ground station of the German Armed Forces in Gelsdorf was tracking the satellite at the same time and was expected to assume operative responsibility for it at the end of July 2007, at when the spacecraft would start collecting radar images.
In the meantime, the German Armed Forces were already able to use the system. With the second launch, the system could be operational by autumn of 2007.
The first SAR-Lupe satellite has been in orbit since December 2006. It was supplying superb high-resolution images and was operating successfully, OHB-System AG said.
At the time, the remaining three satellites were expected to fly in intervals of around four months, with the entire system to be completed in 2008.
Russia launches a military navigation satellite
Published: 2007 Sept. 11
Russian military launched a classified payload, believed to be a navigation satellite. The Kosmos-3M rocket lifted off from Russia's northern cosmodrome in
Plesetsk
on Sept. 11, 2007, at 17:05 Moscow Time. According to the representative of the Russian space forces, KVR, quoted by the Interfax AVN agency, the launch vehicle carried a military payload for the Ministry of Defense.
The payload reached its operational orbit at 18:08 Moscow Time, as expected, and some one hour later, as the satellite entered within range of ground control stations, it established normal contact with the ground, officials said. The Kosmos-3M rocket routinely launches military satellites from the
Parus
(Sail) series.
Russia orbits a German military satellite
Published: 2007 Nov. 1
A Russian Cosmos 3M rocket lifted off on schedule from the
Russian cosmodrome Plesetsk
, in the early hours on November 1, 2007, at 03:51 Moscow Time. The rocket was carrying the
third SAR-Lupe
radar satellite, which it successfully released into its intended orbit around half an hour later, the satellite manufacturer OHB System AG announced. Preliminary signs of life from the satellite were picked up by the Kerguelen ground station in the southern Indian Ocean. As planned, direct contacts were established between the control center and the satellite 92 minutes into the mission. Preliminary tests have confirmed that the third SAR-Lupe satellite is also working properly. Accordingly, work commenced on putting it into operation last night.
Satellite control is currently in the hands of the German Space Agency DLR in Oberpfaffenhofen. The ground station of the German Armed Forces in Gelsdorf was tracking the satellite at the same time and was to assume operational responsibility for it in around four weeks. Around the same time, the radar was expected to start collecting SAR radar images.
This launch was originally scheduled for the third quarter of 2007.
In orbit since December 2006 and July 2007, respectively, the first two SAR-Lupe satellites are supplying outstanding high-resolution images and operating very successfully and reliably.
The remaining two satellites will be launched in intervals of four or five months, with the entire system to be fully operational in 2008.
The Kosmos-3M also carried an Automatic Identification System (AIS) for ships on board. OHB and LuxSpace Sarl, a company owned by OHB Technology AG, are working on the validation of this and following systems. OHB is building seven new ORBCOMM satellites in which the AIS will be implemented for the US Coast Guard for global monitoring of shipping traffic.
Russia orbits a German military satellite
Published: 2008 March 27
After a two-day delay by bad weather, Russian Cosmos 3M rocket lifted off from the
Russian cosmodrome Plesetsk
on March 27, 2008, at 20:15 Moscow Time. The rocket was carrying the
fourth SAR-Lupe
radar satellite, which it successfully released into its intended orbit 28-minutes later, the official Russian media said.
The mission was originally scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2007. It was then delayed for 24 hours due to high winds at the 13-kilometer altitude on March 25 and March 26, 2008.
Russia launches multiple satellites
Published: 2008 June 19
Russia's
original ballistic missile test site
served as a spaceport for a rare orbital launch attempt. The Kosmos-3M rocket blasted off from the Kapustin Yar military range on June 19, 2008, at 10:36:45 Moscow Time, Russian space agency announced. The rocket carried a cluster of six 115-kilogram satellites for the US-based Orbcomm commercial communications network, including five operational spacecraft, known as Quick Launch and one experimental Coast Guard Concept Demonstration satellite. The total mass of the payload section was announced at 1,070 kilograms. The satellites were expected to provide global communications and navigation data for 10 years.
The rocket was expected to deliver its payload into a 670-kilometer circular orbit with the inclination 48.4 degrees toward the Equator, some 33 minutes after liftoff. The mission was originally expected in the fourth quarter of
2007
, and later slipped to the first quarter of 2008, May 22 and May 30, 2008. This was the first orbital launch attempt conducted in Kapustin Yar since 1999.
Russia completes a German military constellation
Published: 2008 July 22
Russian government launched the fifth and last satellite for the network of German reconnaissance satellites. The Kosmos-3M rocket lifted off from the
Russian cosmodrome Plesetsk
on July 22, 2008, at 06:40:09 Moscow Summer Time. The rocket was carrying the
SAR-Lupe
5
radar satellite. According to the satellite manufacturer, OHB System, the payload entered its low-altitude orbit with the altitude of around 500 kilometers above the Earth's surface roughly half an hour later.
The first contact between the control center at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in Oberpfaffenhofen and the satellite was established at 05:43:13 Central European Time, CEST. A preliminary check of all vital functions showed that the satellite was operating perfectly and work on putting the satellite into operation has commenced, the company announced.
Kosmos-3M launches a pair of satellites
Published: 2009 July 21
Russia launched a pair of satellites from its northern cosmodrome. The Kosmos-3M rocket lifted off on July 21, 2009, from Plesetsk, carrying two payloads, believed to be a
Parus
military navigation satellite (later named Kosmos-2454) and the
Sterkh
emergency rescue signal spacecraft. The mission was previously expected to take place in 2008.
Kosmos-192 releases debris
Published: 2009 Oct. 9
A US radar detected as many as 20 debris from the Soviet
Kosmos-192
satellite, a part of the Tsyklon navigation network. The satellite was launched on Nov. 23, 1967, and spewed its debris after almost 42 years in orbit, on Aug. 30, 2009, NASA's
Orbital Debris Quarterly News
reported. Known today as Tsyklon series of satellites, Kosmos-192 was circling Earth in a 710 by 715-kilometer orbit with the inclination 74 degrees toward the Equator, when an event of unknown origin caused the debris. The satellite originally entered a 745 by 760-kilometer orbit, which was slowly decaying over four decades. According to NASA, the incident could be caused by a collision with an unknown object, or by a breach of the satellite's pressurized compartment, as a result of fatigue under extreme conditions in space.
A military navsat launched
Published: 2010 April 27
A Russian rocket launched a classified payload from Russia's northern cosmodrome. A Kosmos-3M rocket lifted off from Pad 1 at
Site 132
in
Plesetsk
on April 27, 2010, at 05:05 Moscow Summer Time. The spacecraft was expected to separate from the upper stage of the launch vehicle at 06:08 Moscow Time, while out of range of the Russian ground control stations. According to the Russian space forces, Titov test and control center successfully established contact with the satellite at 06:41 Moscow Time on April 27. The payload was officially identified only as
Kosmos-2463
, but it is believed to be a
Parus
spacecraft for military navigation and communications.
According to this month's statement by the commander of the Russian space forces Oleg Ostapenko, the current mission would one of three last launches of the veteran Kosmos-3M launch vehicle. Russian military planned to use all remaining rockets in its storage, with no additional production scheduled.
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