Russia launches its 1st all-weather satellite

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - Russia on Saturday launched its Condor-FKA satellite, which can take pictures of the earth's surface around the clock in any weather, including in conditions of heavy clouds.

The satellite was launched from Russia's Vostochny Cosmodrome, a Russian spaceport in Russia's far-eastern Amur Oblast, using Soyuz 2.1a, a rocket-powered vehicle, the state space agency Roscosmos said in a statement.

"The separation of the spacecraft from the upper stage was carried out successfully. The first radar satellite has been launched into a given orbit," it said.

Condor-FKA was developed by the military-industrial corporation Scientific and Production Association of Mechanical Engineering.

The mass of the satellite is 1,050 kg.