Strela (satellite)
| Manufacturer | NPO PM |
|---|---|
| Country of origin |
Soviet Union Russia |
| Operator |
VKS/GRU VKO |
| Applications | Communication |
| Specifications | |
| Design life | 5 years |
| Power | 40 Watts from solar panels |
| Batteries | Nickel hydrogen |
| Equipment |
UHF transponders (NATO B/D band) Data rate of up to 64 kb/s) |
| Regime | Low Earth |
| Production | |
| Status | Operational |
| Related spacecraft | |
| Derivatives |
Gonets Rodnik |
Strela (Russian: Стрела, arrow) is a Russian (previously Soviet) military communications satellite constellation operating in low Earth orbit.
These satellites operate as mailboxes ("store-and-forward"): they remember the received messages and then resend them after scheduled time, or by command from the Earth. Some sources state the satellites are capable of only three months of active operation, but in accordance to others they can serve for about five years. The satellites are used for transmission of encrypted messages and images.
The first three satellites, Kosmos 38 (reentered 1964-11-08), Kosmos 39 (reentered 1964-11-17) and Kosmos 40 (reentered 1964-11-17), were launched on 18 August 1964. Five different types of Strela satellites have been launched, designated Strela-1 (1964-65), Strela-1M (1970-1992), Strela-2 (1965-1968), Strela-2M (1970-1994), and Strela-3 (1985-2010). Strela satellites are also used for the civilian Gonets program. The current version of Strela, Strela-3M is also known as Rodnik.
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