Classified military satellite of Russia

Classified military satellite of Russia

Part of: Prelims and GS-II- International Relations and GS-III – Defence and security 

Context Russia recently successfully placed a military satellite into orbit which is believed to be part of the Kremlin’s early warning anti-missile system.

• The launch could be delivering a Tundra satellite. 
• Russia has previously launched Tundra satellites in 2015, 2017 and 2019.
• The ground track of the launch “matched previous missions” delivering satellites for Russia’s missile warning system named Kupol or dome.
  • Unveiled in 2019, Kupol is designed to detect launches of ballistic missiles and track them to their landing site, though its exact configuration is unknown.