The Russian satellite “Kosmos-2612“ came within 26 to 470 meters of the Finnish-American radar satellite ICEYE-X36. The approach occurred at around 01:35 GMT on October 18, after a series of maneuvers that began four days earlier. The exact distance cannot be determined due to measurement errors, “Medusa“ reports.
ICEYE-X36 belongs to the Finnish-American company ICEYE, which provides satellite images to Ukraine. Data from the device is used to monitor Russian military sites, including airports, ports and oil refineries.
The approach is closer than any previous case
This is not the first time that Russian satellites have maneuvered around ICEYE-X36. In the spring, similar operations were carried out by “Kosmos-2610“, “Kosmos-2611“ and “Kosmos-2613“, along with “Kosmos-2612“. Earlier this year, satellites from the “Luch“ series were associated with maneuvers around telecommunications devices of Intelsat and Eutelsat.
What is new in the latest episode is the small distance between the two devices. Independent researcher of the Russian space program Bart Hendricks defines the case as unprecedented for low-Earth orbit.
„We have not seen anything like this before. At least in low-Earth orbit. Previous distances during rapprochement were no less than a few tens of kilometers“, says Hendricks.According to him, the complexity and sequence of the maneuvers indicate that the satellites consumed a significant amount of fuel. Hendricks assumes that Moscow has demonstrated the ability to quickly and unpredictably change the orbits of its devices in order to put pressure on foreign satellites.
Moscow presents the operation as deterrence
In an article in „Rossiyskaya Gazeta“ military expert Yuri Knutov, a colonel in the reserve and director of the Air Defense Forces Museum, defines the actions as legal and the inspection satellites as a “tool of strategic deterrence“.
“Any commercial company that provides its intelligence capabilities against Russia must take into account that its devices may be subjected to forced inspection in orbit“, Knutov writes.According to him, in addition to the ICEYE satellites, part of NATO's de facto intelligence assets is the Starlink group, which is important for the management and communications of the Ukrainian army. This is an assessment of the Russian expert, and not an independently confirmed explanation of the purpose of the maneuvers.
The rapprochement was also observed from Earth. The Swiss company s2a systems photographed both devices, with ICEYE-X36 being the brighter object. The satellite could be distinguished with binoculars or an amateur telescope, but not with the naked eye.
It is unclear whether the pursuit will continue
As of October 21, “Kosmos-2612“ was about 480 kilometers from ICEYE-X36. According to Hendrix, this does not mean that the operation is over. The Russian satellite can return if it has enough fuel, and another ICEYE device - ICEYE-X37 - is among the possible targets.
Both the United States and China have programs for satellite inspectors. These devices can be used for surveillance, diagnostics, interception of radio signals or destruction of another space object. In this case, there is no public confirmation that ICEYE-X36 has been damaged or that an attack has been launched against it.
Sources: meduza.io, spaceweather.com