Russia has launched a Soyuz-U carrier rocket, with a Cosmos-series military satellite, from the Plesetsk space centre in north Russia.
The Soyuz-U carrier rocket successfully orbited a satellite the Cosmos 2455 satellite, which forms part of Russia’s Oko orbital missile early warning network.
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Cosmos 2441, launched on 26 July 2008, features enhanced imaging technology with an extended lifetime of up to seven years.
The Soyuz-U rocket, with a payload of up to 6,950kg, is intended to orbit Soyuz and Progress manned and cargo spacecraft, as well as special-purpose satellites including Cosmos, Resurs-F, Foton and Bion.
According to reports, Russia operates a network of 60-70 reconnaissance satellites and has executed 16 space launches since the beginning of 2009.
