Posted: Thu, Jul 25, 2002, 4:11 PM ET (2011 GMT)
A Proton booster successfully launched a Russian military reconnaissance satellite on Thursday. The Proton-K booster lifted off from Baikonur Cosmodrome at 11:13 am EDT (1513 GMT), with separation of the spacecraft from the Proton's upper stage taking place two hours later. The spacecraft, known as Kosmos 2392, is believed to be an Arkon-class military reconnaissance satellite; the only other Arkon satellite, Kosmos 2344, was placed in an elliptical 63.4-degree orbit at an altitude of 1500 to 2740 km. Yuri Koptev, head of Rosaviakosmos, told the news agency RIA Novosti that the spacecraft would also be used for ecological studies of land and oceans.

Related Links:

•  RIA Novosti article
•  Arkon information from Encyclopedia Astronautica