After launching from the Plesetsk cosmodrome, the Cosmos-2555 satellite was able to stay in orbit for just 20 days.
Russia’s military satellite Cosmos-2555 has burned into the Earth’s atmosphere. This was announced yesterday by TASS in relation to North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) data.
It is indicated that on the morning of May 18, the satellite orbited and entered the atmosphere. The object no longer exists at this time.
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It is learned that the Kosmos-2555 satellite was launched into orbit using the Angara-1.2 light launch vehicle on April 29 from the Plesetsk cosmodrome in the interest of the Russian Defense Ministry. A few hours later, the military department reported that the device had been successfully launched into target orbit. The purpose of the satellite was not reported. At the same time, the letter Z in the colors of St. George ribbon was applied to the satellite – a symbol of the aggressive war between the Russian Federation and Ukraine.
Astronautics expert and popularizer Vitaly Egorov told The Insider that it may have been a visual reconnaissance satellite that conducted optical surveillance.
Yegorov added that on May 18 the satellite did not transmit radio signals and did not remain in orbit. They wanted to correct its trajectory by turning on the machines, but it gave no results. Kosmos-2555 was only able to perform a short-term orbital correction in 15 days-on May 6th.
After that, its orbit decreases, but in 10-12 days it loses 30 kilometers and drops to a height of approximately 260 km. Over the next three days, the fall of the satellite accelerated, it approached Earth at a distance of 120 km.
It was noted that in the context of the war in Ukraine, the Russian army desperately needs military satellites to receive intelligence. The Russian Federation has virtually no optical observation satellites in orbit. And those flying are still ending their service life. At the same time, the creation and launch of new devices is hampered by Western sanctions.
According to experts, only two military optical reconnaissance satellites Person, launched in 2013-2015, are currently in orbit.
“The next satellites will not be launched until 2023. In principle, Russia is almost blind to orbit,” Bart Hendrix, an analyst in the field of space programming, told Radio Liberty.
But even if Russia has enough satellites, their constellation must be constantly updated due to the low service life of the devices. They are half American, due to the lack of high-quality electronics.
Recall that last year Russia’s military satellite Meridian de-orbited and burned into the atmosphere. He was unable to enter the calculated orbit due to the premature closure of the third phase of the launch vehicle.
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Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.