Israeli spy sat crashes on launch

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earth_bound_misfit

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Israeli spy sat crashes on launch<br />Correspondents in Jerusalem<br />September 7, 2004<br /><br />ISRAEL'S new-generation spy satellite Ofek 6 has failed a launch attempt and crashed into the Mediterranean after a technical malfunction.<br /><br />"Today, September 6, 2004 at 1:53 pm (1053 GMT) an unsuccessful attempt was made to launch into orbit a remote sensing satellite," a defence ministry statement said. <br /><br />"The source of the malfunction in the third stage is being investigated by experts from the MOD and the involved industries," it said. <br /><br />The ministry said the satellite crashed into the sea after a launcher malfunction. <br /><br />"The satellite did not explode. There was apparently a malfunction in the third stage ... (and) it sank into the Mediterranean Sea hundreds of kilometres from shore," the ministry said. <br /><br />The satellite is seen as a major asset for Israel's military intelligence services, and is considered one of the most advanced in the world, the radio said. <br /><br />The satellite and its launcher were developed by a consortium of high-tech industries including Israel Military Industries, Rafael, Elbit Systems and Elisra. <br /><br />On May 28, 2002, Israel launched the Ofek 5 satellite to keep an eye on its neighbours and lift it into an exclusive club of states with satellite programmes. <br /><br />According to military experts, Ofek 5, which circles the earth every 90 minutes, provides pictures of troop movements, missile-launcher locations and the construction of nuclear sites. <br /><br />It is capable of taking pictures of objects as small as a metre in length from an altitude of 450km. <br /><br />Agence France-Presse<br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p> </p><p>----------------------------------------------------------------- </p><p>Wanna see this site looking like the old SDC uplink?</p><p>Go here to see how: <strong>SDC Eye saver </strong>  </p> </div>
 
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omegamogo

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I hope they it was insured! Maybe they should have had the Russians launch it, But the payload being a spy sat I doubt that would have been possible.
 
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jcdenton

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Coupled with the Arrow missile failure, things are not looking good for Israel's defence ambitions.<br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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wvbraun

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As long as they have nukes there is nothing to worry about. I wonder if Iran will be foolish enough to attack Israel when the IDF destroys their nuclear facilities...
 
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najab

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I hope everyone noticed <b>where</b> the rocket crashed. It's hard to launch rockets when you're Israel.
 
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nacnud

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Yep, its one of the few launches to launch westwards in fact I don't know of any others.
 
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CalliArcale

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For those who didn't notice....<br /><br />The rocket crashed *west* of the launchpad. That is against the Earth's rotation (or, more technically speaking, retrograde). Israel can only launch into a very narrow range of retrograde orbits because of the fact that a) the only large body of water is to the west, and b) none of their neighbors are remotely willing to permit rocket overflights. (Though even if the political situation were different, I suspect they still wouldn't allow it. Just look at what the people of Kazakhstan have to put up with!)<br /><br />I'm frankly amazed Israel even has a satellite launch program. It's certainly a sign of their determination. Or paranoia -- this is after all a <i>military</i> launch, and it's tough to beat any military for paranoia. <img src="/images/icons/tongue.gif" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#666699"><em>"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff."</em>  -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>
 
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jcdenton

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They might as well just let the US, their main supplier and financier, launch satellites for them. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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halman

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CalliArcale,<br /><br />It used to be that rocket science was pushing itself to the limit to acheive 18,000 miles per hour. Launching eastward shaved up to 1,000 mph off of the velocity required for orbital insertion. Today, an additional 1,000 mph hour is no big deal, or so it would seem.<br /><br />Considering how few friends Isreal has, I am not surprised that they have not built launch facilities in a more beneficial location. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> The secret to peace of mind is a short attention span. </div>
 
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igorsboss

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I noticed...<br /><br />Israel's prograde flight plan: Go straight up. When you get to 120 km, hang a louie.
 
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CalliArcale

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<blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr /><p>It used to be that rocket science was pushing itself to the limit to acheive 18,000 miles per hour. Launching eastward shaved up to 1,000 mph off of the velocity required for orbital insertion. Today, an additional 1,000 mph hour is no big deal, or so it would seem. <p><hr /></p></p></blockquote><br /><br />It's certainly doable, but it's more expensive. That's why nobody else does it, even though it's technically feasable. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#666699"><em>"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff."</em>  -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>
 
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mooware

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<font color="yellow">"They might as well just let the US, their main supplier and financier, launch satellites for them"</font><br /><br />They probably didn't let us launch it because they are using the satellite to spy on us..<br /><br /><br /><br />
 
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bobvanx

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They'd have to ship to the launch site through the Red Sea, effectively running the gauntlet.<br /><br />That would require a measure of self-discipline and trust.
 
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