Russia Puts Military-Purpose Satellite Into Orbit

A spokesman for Russia's Aerospace Defense Forces says that a Russian military satellite has reached its designated orbit and established stable contact with ground control services.

A Russian military satellite has reached its designated orbit and established stable contact with ground control services, a spokesman for Russia's Aerospace Defense Forces told RIA Novosti on Friday.

The satellite was launched earlier on Friday on board a Soyuz-2.1a carrier rocket from the Plesetsk space center in northern Russia.

"The telemetry link with the satellite has been established and maintained. All on-board systems are performing normally," Col. Dmitry Zenin said.

The satellite, designated Kosmos-2505, is believed to be part of the Russian optical reconnaissance satellite network.

This was the first launch of a Soyuz-2.1a rocket after the failure of the Progress-M27M mission in April.