Upravlyaemy Sputnik Kontinentalny (russian: Управляемый Спутник Континентальный meaning ''Continental Controllable Satellite'') or US-K (russian: УС-К) is a series of Russian, previously
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
,
satellite
A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioisotope ...
s used to detect
missile
In military terminology, a missile is a guided airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight usually by a jet engine or rocket motor. Missiles are thus also called guided missiles or guided rockets (when a previously unguided rocket i ...
launches as part of the
Oko
OKO ( rus, ОКО, r=, literally means eye, also an abbreviation for Ob'yedinonnyye Kristallom Osnovaniya ( rus, Oбъединённые Кристаллом Oснования, r=, literally means Foundations Bound by a Crystal)) is a complex o ...
system.
It consists of a constellation of satellites, usually in
molniya orbit
A Molniya orbit ( rus, Молния, p=ˈmolnʲɪjə, a=Ru-молния.ogg, "Lightning") is a type of satellite orbit designed to provide communications and remote sensing coverage over high latitudes. It is a highly elliptical orbit with an ...
s, designated under the
Kosmos system. The satellites are built by the company
NPO Lavochkin
NPO Lavochkin (russian: НПО Лавочкина, OKB-301, also called Lavochkin Research and Production Association or shortly Lavochkin Association, LA) is a Russian aerospace company. It is a major player in the Russian space program, being th ...
and are launched on
Molniya-M
The Molniya-M (russian: Молния, meaning "lightning"), designation 8K78M, was a Soviet Union (later Russian) launch vehicle derived from the R-7 Semyorka Intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).
The original 8K78 booster had been the ...
rockets. Oko can be directly translated as the Russian word for eye. As of June 2014, only two of the eight satellites in orbit were still functional, rendering the system inoperable.
History
US-K are the first generation of Oko satellites, the first of which was launched in 1972. The vast majority of the satellites launched (86 out of 100 as of March 2012
) have been US-K satellites in
molniya orbit
A Molniya orbit ( rus, Молния, p=ˈmolnʲɪjə, a=Ru-молния.ogg, "Lightning") is a type of satellite orbit designed to provide communications and remote sensing coverage over high latitudes. It is a highly elliptical orbit with an ...
s. Seven first generation satellites were launched into
geosynchronous orbit
A geosynchronous orbit (sometimes abbreviated GSO) is an Earth-centered orbit with an orbital period that matches Earth's rotation on its axis, 23 hours, 56 minutes, and 4 seconds (one sidereal day). The synchronization of rotation and orbital ...
s, called
US-KS
Upravlyaemy Sputnik Kontinentalny Statsionarny (russian: Управляемый Спутник Континентальный Стационарный meaning ''Stationary Continental Controllable Satellite''), or US-KS (russian: УС-КС), also ...
, starting in 1975.
A decree of 3 September 1979 led to the creation of the second generation satellites
US-KMO
US-KMO (russian: УС-КМО), an abbreviation for Upravlyaemy Sputnik - Kontinenty Morya Okeany (russian: Управляемый Спутник - Континенты Моря Океаны) meaning ''Controllable Satellite - Continents, Oceans, Se ...
which had their first launch in 1991.
In total,
101 satellites have been launched.
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the rate of launches decreased, but Russia remained committed to the programme. A fully functioning constellation with 5 satellites was restored in 2001, but a fire in May 2001 in the Oko control facility at
Serpukhov-15
Serpukhov-15 ( rus, Серпухов-15) is a military townlet near Kurilovo in Kaluga Oblast which is the location of the western control centre for Russia's Oko satellites. These give early warning of ballistic missile launches, mainly from th ...
near
Kurilovo outside Moscow reduced the number of operational satellites to 2.
A further satellite was launched in the same year. Between 2002 and 2006, there were no Oko launches, until another Oko satellite, designated
Kosmos 2422
Kosmos 2422 (russian: Космос 2422 meaning ''Cosmos 2422'') was a Russian US-K missile early warning satellite which was launched in 2006 as part of the Russian Space Forces' Oko programme. The satellite was designed to identify missile launch ...
, was launched in July 2006.
In 2006, Russia had one operational
US-KMO
US-KMO (russian: УС-КМО), an abbreviation for Upravlyaemy Sputnik - Kontinenty Morya Okeany (russian: Управляемый Спутник - Континенты Моря Океаны) meaning ''Controllable Satellite - Continents, Oceans, Se ...
(
Kosmos 2379
Kosmos 2379 (russian: Космос 2379 meaning ''Cosmos 2379'') is a Russian US-KMO missile early warning satellite which was launched in 2001 as part of the Russian Space Forces' Oko programme. The satellite is designed to identify missile launc ...
) satellite and four US-K satellites (
Kosmos 2422
Kosmos 2422 (russian: Космос 2422 meaning ''Cosmos 2422'') was a Russian US-K missile early warning satellite which was launched in 2006 as part of the Russian Space Forces' Oko programme. The satellite was designed to identify missile launch ...
,
Kosmos 2393
Kosmos 2393 (russian: Космос 2393 meaning ''Cosmos 2393'') is a Russian US-K missile early warning satellite which was launched in 2002 as part of the Russian Space Forces' Oko programme. The satellite is designed to identify missile launches ...
,
Kosmos 2351
Kosmos 2351 (russian: Космос 2351 meaning ''Cosmos 2351'') was a Russian US-K missile early warning satellite which was launched in 1998 as part of the Russian Space Forces' Oko programme. The satellite was designed to identify missile launc ...
,
Kosmos 2368
Kosmos 2368 (russian: Космос 2368 meaning ''Cosmos 2368'') was a Russian US-K missile early warning satellite which was launched in 1999 as part of the Russian Space Forces' Oko programme. The satellite was designed to identify missile laun ...
).
In June 2011,
Kosmos 2422
Kosmos 2422 (russian: Космос 2422 meaning ''Cosmos 2422'') was a Russian US-K missile early warning satellite which was launched in 2006 as part of the Russian Space Forces' Oko programme. The satellite was designed to identify missile launch ...
,
Kosmos 2430
Kosmos 2430 (russian: Космос 2430 meaning ''Cosmos 2430'') was a Russian US-K missile early warning satellite which was launched in 2007 as part of the Russian Space Forces' Oko programme. The satellite was designed to identify missile launch ...
,
Kosmos 2446
Kosmos 2446 (russian: Космос 2446 meaning ''Cosmos 2446'') is a Russian US-K missile early warning satellite which was launched in 2008 as part of the Russian Space Forces' Oko programme. The satellite is designed to identify missile launche ...
and
Kosmos 2469
Kosmos 2469 (russian: Космос 2469 meaning ''Cosmos 2469'') was a Russian US-K missile early warning satellite which was launched in 2010 as part of the Russian Space Forces' Oko programme. The satellite was designed to identify missile launc ...
were reported to be the only operational satellites.
Satellites
The Oko satellites are drum-shaped, 2 metres long and with a diameter of 1.7 m. They weigh 1,250 kilograms without fuel and 2,400 kilograms when fully loaded. They have a 350 kg infrared telescope pointing toward Earth, with a 4 m conical sunshield and an instrument bus. The telescope, which is the satellites' main instrument, is able to detect radiation from ascending missiles. Two solar panels provide a total of 2.8 kW of power. There are also several smaller, wider-angle telescopes to supplement the main instrument. The satellites have 16 liquid fuel engines for
attitude control
Attitude control is the process of controlling the orientation of an aerospace vehicle with respect to an inertial frame of reference or another entity such as the celestial sphere, certain fields, and nearby objects, etc.
Controlling vehicle ...
and 4 for maneuvering.
The system requires at least 4 satellites to be fully functional. The danger of false alarms increases when there are fewer than 4 satellites in orbit, due to the inability to double-check a detection.
However, this risk is reduced by the presence of the US-KMO geosynchronous satellites.
The satellites are built by
NPO Lavochkin
NPO Lavochkin (russian: НПО Лавочкина, OKB-301, also called Lavochkin Research and Production Association or shortly Lavochkin Association, LA) is a Russian aerospace company. It is a major player in the Russian space program, being th ...
and launched with
Molniya-M
The Molniya-M (russian: Молния, meaning "lightning"), designation 8K78M, was a Soviet Union (later Russian) launch vehicle derived from the R-7 Semyorka Intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).
The original 8K78 booster had been the ...
rockets. The advantages of Oko include that the system is reliable and well-established, and that it uses the relatively inexpensive (but now discontinued) Molniya launcher.
The last US-K satellite (
Kosmos 2469
Kosmos 2469 (russian: Космос 2469 meaning ''Cosmos 2469'') was a Russian US-K missile early warning satellite which was launched in 2010 as part of the Russian Space Forces' Oko programme. The satellite was designed to identify missile launc ...
) was launched on 30 September 2010.
As of December 2015, the entire Oko programme is being replaced by the new
EKS system.
References
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]
{{Russian Reconnaissance Satellites
1973 in spaceflight
Oko
Military satellites
Military satellites of Russia
Satellites in Molniya orbit