Kondor (satellite)

Kondor, GRAU index 14F133, is a series of Earth imaging or military reconnaissance satellites developed by NPO Mashinostroyeniya for the Russian Aerospace Defence Forces which in 2015 became the Russian Space Forces and export customers. Satellites for the Russian military are designated "Kondor", whilst those for export are designated Kondor-E.

Kondor
ManufacturerNPO Mashinostroyeniya
Country of originRussia
ApplicationsOptical imaging
Radar imaging
Specifications
Design life3-5 years
Launch mass1,000 kilograms (2,200 lb)
RegimeLow Earth
Dimensions
Production
StatusIn production
Built2
On order~3
Launched2
Operational2
Maiden launchKosmos 2487 (Kondor No.202)[1]
27 June 2013

Kondor satellites are equipped to carry either synthetic aperture radar or electro-optical imaging payloads, with the first satellite, and are launched using the Strela carrier rocket, developed by NPO Mashinostroyeniya from retired UR-100NUTTKh missiles.[2]

A mass simulator named Gruzomaket (aka Kondor-E-GVM, COSPAR 2003-055A [3]) was launched on 5 December 2003, and almost ten years later on 27 June 2013, the first spacecraft was launched. Kondor No.202 (aka Kosmos 2487, Kondor 1, COSPAR 2013-032A[4]) is operated by the Russian military,[1] and carries a radar imaging payload.[5] It is the first radar imaging satellite to be operated by the Russian military after the Soviet RORSAT and Almaz-T series. The first Kondor-E (Kondor-E 1, COSPAR 2014-084A[6]) launched 19 December 2014 for South Africa.[7]

Civilian versions of the satellite have been designed under the name Kondor-FKA or Kondor-FKA-M. None of these satellites have been launched as of 2019.[8][9]

References
  1. "Issue 681". Jonathan's Space Report. Retrieved 28 June 2013.
  2. Zak, Anatoly. "Strela launcher". RussianSpaceWeb. Retrieved 28 June 2013.
  3. https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/gruzomaket.htm
  4. https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/kondor-1.htm
  5. Zak, Anatoly. "Kondor (14F133) satellite". RussianSpaceWeb. Retrieved 28 June 2013.
  6. https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/kondor-e-1.htm
  7. Graham, William. "Russian Strela rocket launches Kondor-E". NasaSpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
  8. https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/kondor-fka-1.htm
  9. https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/kondor-fka-m-1.htm
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.