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India Launches Israeli Radar Satellite

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By barbara opall-rome
Published: 13 Feb 11:22 EST (06:22 GMT)

TEL AVIV - Israel's first 24-hour, all-weather, high-resolution radar satellite, dubbed TechSAR, was inserted into orbit Jan. 21 by an Indian Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV).

The launch from the Sriharikota test site on the Bay of Bengal in southeast India marked the seventh successful orbital insertion for the four-stage PSLV and the first cooperative satellite launch between Israel and its principal export customer, defense and industry officials here said.

According to state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), Israel's sole satellite producing firm, first signals from the synthetic aperture radar (SAR) spacecraft reached its operational ground control station near IAI headquarters about 80 minutes after the launch.

"By all indications so far, the satellite is functioning properly," IAI announced.

In a Jan. 21 statement, IAI said company engineers began an extensive, nearly monthlong series of in-orbit tests to verify satellite performance. First images from TechSAR are scheduled for receipt in about two weeks.

Israel's Ministry of Defense and national intelligence agencies are primary customers of the day, night and all-weather imagery generated by the TechSAR payload, developed by IAI subsidiary Elta Systems. Despite the strategic intelligence-gathering mission assigned to the nationally funded TechSAR, Israel's MoD did not provide a statement on the launch and referred all queries to IAI.

"We're all very proud of this achievement, which serves as additional proof of IAI's great technological and administrative capabilities, and of IAI's leadership in the Israeli space industry," said Itzhak Nissan, IAI's president and chief executive officer.

TechSAR's successful launch follows repeated technical and weather-related delays.

The Israeli satellite was delivered to the Indian launch facility by summer 2007 and had actually completed integration testing on the PSLV in time for an autumn 2007 launch. However, due to circumstances that neither IAI nor the Indian launch provider were willing to discuss publicly, the satellite was removed from its launch vehicle and held in storage until the weeks preceding the Jan. 21 launch.
 
Indian Agency Plans More Israeli Spy Sat Launches

By vivek raghuvanshi
Published: 11 Feb 12:48 EST (07:48 GMT)

NEW DELHI - India plans to launch more Israeli spy satellites from Indian territory, say sources in the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), despite domestic political opposition.

Last month, India launched an Israeli spy satellite from the Sriharikota space center in east India, prompting strong condemnation from the Communist Party, which supports the ruling United Progressive Alliance and whose support is necessary for the government to remain in power.

Iran also has objected to the launch of Israeli satellites from Indian soil.
ISRO sources say Israeli satellites will be launched aboard Indian rockets, adding that ISRO intends to earn additional revenue from rocket launches in the future.

The 300-kilogram Israeli TecSar spy satellite launched by ISRO's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle on Jan. 21 is an advanced satellite equipped with a camera that can take pictures of small targets through clouds and fog.

Israel decided to launch the satellite from India three years ago, and contracted India because Israel lacks a vehicle capable of boosting the satellite into a polar orbit.

However, the launch of future Israeli satellites could come close to general elections slated in 2009 and may not be politically popular, said a source in the Indian Defence Ministry.
 

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