Russian military tests manoeuvring space vehicle in orbit

MOSCOW – The Russian military conducted an experiment Friday involving manoeuvring a space vehicle in orbit.

A small satellite separated from a carrier “space platform,” the Defence Ministry said in a statement. It said the vehicle transmitted images to assess the “technical condition” of another Russian satellite as part of the experiment. It described the test as part of an ongoing effort to check the condition of satellites.

U.S. officials have voiced concern about past Russian experiments with manoeuvring satellites, saying that Moscow’s intentions are unclear.

The ministry previously reported the Nov. 26 launch of the Kosmos-2542 space vehicle described as a “multifunctional space platform” for monitoring satellites.

Several other Russian “inspector” satellites were launched earlier with the same stated purpose and they performed orbital tests.