Posted: Wed, Jun 23, 2010, 7:28 AM ET (1128 GMT)
An Israeli rocket launched a new reconnaissance satellite that may be devoted to keeping an eye on Iran. The Shavit rocket lifted off from the Palmachim air base on the Mediterranean coast of Israel at about 3 pm EDT (1900 GMT) Tuesday and placed the Ofek 9 satellite into low Earth orbit. The satellite is the latest in a series of small imaging satellites operated by the Israeli military and is a slight improvement over the existing Ofek 7 satellite. Officials said that the new satellite will provide greater flexibility in Earth observations, particularly of Iran.

Related Links:

•  Jerusalem Post article
•  BBC article
•  Space News article
•  Spaceflight Now article
•  Israel Aerospace Industries press release