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Molniya Launches
Classified Satellite from Plesetsk
A Molniya M
successfully launched a Russian classified satellite from Plesetsk
Cosmodrome, Launch Pad 3 at Site 43,
at 1134 UTC (4:34 a.m. PDT) on October 25. The Molniya M rocket is
a variant of the Soyuz rocket family. The Molniya class satellite
was placed in a highly elliptical orbit, with an inclination of
62.8 degrees, for the Russian Defense Ministry.
Reshetnev
Center, Zheleznogorsk, builds the Molniya satellites. The
satellites are used to transmit television and radio signals for
both civilian and military users; however, this latest satellite
is expected to serve the military. Molniya
translates from Russian into English as lightning.
Molniya spacecraft orbit in elliptical orbits with an apogee as high as
40,000 km, over the northern hemisphere, and a perigee as low as
470 km over the southern hemisphere, with one rotation taking
about 12 hours. This orbit results in the spacecraft slowly
drifting over Russia, disappearing from view of ground control
stations only for a short while. To provide uninterrupted
communications over Russia several Molniya satellites have to be
in operation. The
most recent Molniya spacecraft was launched July 20, 2001.
Copyright 2001 - Andrews Space & Technology
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