GLONASS-M

GLONASS-M (Russian: ГЛОНАСС-М), also known as Uragan-M (Russian: Ураган-М) (GRAU index 11F654M given to the first two pilot satellites and 14F113 to the rest) are the second generation of Uragan satellite design used as part of the Russian GLONASS radio-based satellite navigation system. Developed by ISS Reshetnev (Reshetnev Information Satellite Systems), it had its debut launch in 2003, and is in the process of being phased out. Its production is expected to finish in 2015 and as of July, 2015, its last launch was expected in late 2017. It is an evolution of the previous Uragan (GRAU Index 11F654) second-generation satellites, improving accuracy, increasing power, extending the design life and adding the FDMA L2OF open signal. The last eight Glonass-M spacecraft in production include the new CDMA L3OC open signal.

GLONASS-M[1]

Model of Glonass-M satellite at CeBIT 2011.
Designer	ISS Reshetnev
Country of origin	Russia
Operator	JSC «Navigation-Information Systems»
Applications	Navigation
Specifications
Bus	3-Axis stabilized Uragan-M[2]
Constellation	GLONASS
Design life	7 years[1]
Launch mass	1,415 kg (3,120 lb)[1]
Power	1250 W[1]
Batteries	NiH2[3]
Equipment	3 Cs clocks[3] FDMA signals: L1OF, L1SF, L2OF and L2SF CDMA signals: L3OC (s/n 755+) Space Laser Ranging[3]
Regime	MEO
Production
Built	52
Launched	51
Operational	25
Retired	17
Lost	6
Maiden launch	10 December 2003 (Kosmos 2404)
Last launch	16 March 2020 (Kosmos 2545)
Last retirement	6 August 2018 (Kosmos 2458)
Related spacecraft
Derived from	GLONASS
← GLONASS GLONASS-K1 →

Design

It used a 3-axis stabilized pressurized bus with two solar panels, a propulsion module and a payload module.[4] At 1,415 kilograms (3,120 lb) these are just 2 kg (4.4 lb) heavier than the previous generation, but have 25% more power 1250 W, 230% more design life (7 years), an additional signal (L2OF) and generally improved accuracy.[1] It uses an on-board computer based on a Russian microprocessor reimplementation of the VAX 11/750 architecture: the Angstrem K1839.[5]

The Uragan-M are usually launched in trios, and due to the close distance, the radios of the three would interfere with each other, meaning that the ground segment can only command one satellite at a time. Setting sun pointing attitude for power and then Earth pointing attitude for communications for a single unit takes about 5 hours. Since the radio contact window with ground control is between 4 and 6 hours, ground control can not control all spacecraft in a single pass. The on-board computer in the Uragan-M can put the spacecraft in sun pointing mode autonomously, and does many of the start up processes so the ground segment can take control and process the Earth pointing mode.[6]

The payload consists of L-Band navigation signals in 25 channels separated by 0.5625 MHz intervals in 2 frequency bands: 1602.5625 - 1615.5 MHz and 1240 - 1260 MHz. EIRP 25 to 27 dBW. Right hand circular polarized.[7] It transmits the FDMA signals L1OF, L1SF, L2OF and L2SF, with the open L2OF being new to the Uragan series. It uses 3 Cs clocks with a clock stability of 1x10⁻¹³ (an 5x improvement over the 5x10⁻¹³ clock stability of the previous generation Uragan).[3]

In 2011 ISS Reshetnev announced plans to include the new CDMA signal L3OC, first introduced on Glonass-K series, on Glonass-M satellites flown from 2014; four of these enhanced models were launched between 2014 and 2019 (s/n 755 to 758); the remaining three are kept in reserve and will be launched as needed in case of on-orbit failures prior to planned replacement.[8]

History

The first generation Uragan spacecraft were created under ban of foreign radiation-hardened components and thus had been an inferior product with just 3 years of expected design life.[9] Given the realized average life was just 22 months, and the fleet should have 24 spacecraft, it was necessary to launch more than 7 spacecraft per year to keep the fleet in good health.[10] To this end, the Uragan-M was designed, with an increased design life of 7 years, thanks to the availability of ITAR controlled parts.[11][12][13]

On December 1, 2001, a first generation GLONASS satellite Kosmos 2382 with new flight control and power systems was launched. This satellite was incorrectly named Uragan-M in a RIA Novosti news message issued days before the launch. When contacted by Novosti Kosmonavtiki magazine Roscosmos spokesman said all three launched satellites were first generation versions but one of them featured new upgraded flight control and power systems.[14] Novosti Kosmonavtiki also pointed out the fact that GLONASS-M project had been approved on August 20, 2001 just three months before Kosmos 2382 launch. RIA Novosti mistake was widely propagated causing confusion regarding which satellite was the first GLONASS-M satellite.

On December 10, 2003, the first Uragan-M was launched by a Proton-K / Briz-M from Baikonur along two Uragan Block IIv satellites. On December 26, 2004 the second Uragan-M was launched by a Proton-K DM-2, also along two Uragan Block IIv satellites. And on December 25, 2005, two Uragan-M were launched along the last Uragan Block IIv satellites.[15][16]

On December 25, 2006 launched the first trio of only Uragan-M. Two launches by late 2007 meant that six additional Uragan-M were added to the fleet. And another six were successfully launched in 2008. On September 12, 2008 Prime Minister Vladimir Putin signed RF Government Resolution on increasing GLONASS Program financing by 67 billion rubles.[15][16] 2009 saw the launch of a single trio of Uragan-M, and with nine spacecraft planned for 2010, full service availability was expected. Regrettably, the third launch, on 5 December 2010, ended in failure, leaving no on-orbit spares.[17]

On October 2, 2011, the first launch of single Uragan-M satellite was performed by a Soyuz-2.1b/Fregat-M which put Kosmos 2474 on orbit from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome. Another Proton-M launched trio and an additional Soyuz-2.1b/Fregat-M launch put the fleet at full operative capacity with 24 healthy satellites.[18] On April 26, 2013 a Soyuz successfully orbited Kosmos 2485, but the Proton-M mission failed spectacularly taking with it a trio of Uragan-M.[19] During 2014, two satellites were launched by Soyuz in March and June.

On a May 28, 2014 interview, Nikolay Testoyedov — president of ISS Reshetnev — stated that production of GLONASS-M would end in 2015, with GLONASS-K being exclusively produced after that final batch.[20] In a December 14, 2014 interview with GPS World, he stated that while the original idea was to have just two GLONASS-K1 prototypes to be followed by the GLONASS-K2 production, the Western sanctions limited the supply of radiation resistant electronics. And thus, they had decided to launch an additional nine GLONASS-K1 as fleet replacement while they finished the GLONASS-K2 design.[21] In a May, 2015 presentation, Mr. Testoyedov expected the last GLONASS-M to fly in late 2017.[22] On July 30, 2015, ISS Reshetnev announced that it had completed the last GLONASS-M (№61) spacecraft and it was putting it in storage waiting for launch, along with an additional eight already built satellites.[23][24] The current production batch (s/n 755+) is an enhanced GLONASS-M that includes an additional transmitter and antenna for the L3OC CDMA signal. After four successful launches until 2019, the last three spacecraft remain in storage and will be launched as needed in case of on-orbit failures prior to planned replacement.[8]

Uragan-M launches

Statistics

Ordered	Manufactured	Launched	Operational	Not in service	Retired	Launch failures	To be launched
52	52	51	25	2	17	6	1

Launch history

Satellites

Satellite	Launch date/time (UTC)	Carrier rocket	Launch site	Launch block	Satellite type	Serial number	Orbital plane	Slot	Status / Retirement	Remarks
Kosmos 2404	10 December 2003 13:53	Proton-K Briz-M	Baikonur 81/24	32	M	701	I	6	18 June 2009
Kosmos 2413	26 December 2004 13:53	Proton-K DM-2	Baikonur 200/39	33	M	712	I	8	22 November 2012
Kosmos 2418	25 December 2005 05:07	Proton-K DM-2	Baikonur 81/24	34	M	713	III	24	18 February 2010
Kosmos 2419					M	714	III	17	24 February 2016
Kosmos 2424	25 December 2006 20:18	Proton-K DM-2	Baikonur 81/24	35	M	715	II	14	26 June 2017
Kosmos 2425					M	716	II	15	Reserve satellite
Kosmos 2426					M	717	II	10	Operational
Kosmos 2431	26 October 2007 07:35	Proton-K DM-2	Baikonur 81/24	36	M	718	III	17	20 October 2011
Kosmos 2432					M	719	III	20	Operational
Kosmos 2433					M	720	III	19	Operational
Kosmos 2434	25 December 2007 19:32	Proton-M DM-2	Baikonur 81/24	37	M	721	II	13	Operational
Kosmos 2435					M	722	II	14	12 October 2011
Kosmos 2436					M	723	II	12	Reserve satellite
Kosmos 2442	25 September 2008 08:49	Proton-M DM-2	Baikonur 81/24	38	M	724	III	18	12 February 2014
Kosmos 2443					M	725	III	21	8 July 2016
Kosmos 2444					M	726	III	22	28 November 2012
Kosmos 2447	25 December 2008 10:43	Proton-M DM-2	Baikonur 81/24	39	M	727	I	3	28 November 2012
Kosmos 2448					M	728	I	2	16 October 2013
Kosmos 2449					M	729	I	8	9 September 2012
Kosmos 2456	14 December 2009 10:38	Proton-M DM-2	Baikonur 81/24	40	M	730	I	1	Operational
Kosmos 2457					M	733	I	6	Operational - No L2 Signal[25]
Kosmos 2458					M	734	I	5	6 August 2018
Kosmos 2459	1 March 2010 21:19	Proton-M DM-2	Baikonur 81/24	41	M	731	III	22	Operational
Kosmos 2460					M	732	III	23	Operational
Kosmos 2461					M	735	III	24	Operational
Kosmos 2464	2 September 2010 00:53	Proton-M DM-2	Baikonur 81/24	42	M	736	II	16	Operational
Kosmos 2465					M	737	II	12	21 November 2016
Kosmos 2466					M	738	II	16	6 June 2016
N/A	5 December 2010 10:25	Proton-M DM-03	Baikonur 81/24	43	M	739	N/A		Failed to orbit
N/A					M	740	N/A		Failed to orbit
N/A					M	741	N/A		Failed to orbit
Kosmos 2474	2 October 2011 20:15	Soyuz-2.1b Fregat-M	Plesetsk 43/4	45S	M	742	I	4	Operational
Kosmos 2475	4 November 2011 12:51	Proton-M Briz-M	Baikonur 81/24	44	M	743	I	8	Operational
Kosmos 2476					M	744	I	3	Operational
Kosmos 2477					M	745	I	7	Operational
Kosmos 2478	28 November 2011 08:25	Soyuz-2.1b Fregat-M	Plesetsk 43/4	46S	M	746	III	17	13 April 2015	Restored the system to fully operational for the first time since late 1995.
Kosmos 2485	26 April 2013 05:23	Soyuz-2.1b Fregat-M	Plesetsk 43/4	47S	M	747	I	2	Operational
N/A	2 July 2013 02:38	Proton-M DM-03	Baikonur 81/24	47	M	748	N/A		Failed to orbit
N/A					M	749	N/A		Failed to orbit
N/A					M	750	N/A		Failed to orbit
Kosmos 2494	23 March 2014 22:54	Soyuz-2.1b Fregat-M	Plesetsk 43/4	48S	M	754	III	18	Operational
Kosmos 2500	14 June 2014 17:16	Soyuz-2.1b Fregat-M	Plesetsk 43/4	49S	M	755	III	21	Operational	First spacecraft to include CDMA L3OC transmitter and antenna
Kosmos 2514	7 February 2016 00:21	Soyuz-2.1b Fregat-M	Plesetsk 43/4	50S	M	751	III	17	Operational
Kosmos 2516	29 May 2016 08:44	Soyuz-2.1b Fregat-M	Plesetsk 43/4	51S	M	753	II	11	Operational
Kosmos 2522	22 September 2017 00:02	Soyuz-2.1b Fregat-M	Plesetsk 43/4	52S	M	752	II	14	Operational
Kosmos 2527	17 June 2018 21:46	Soyuz-2.1b Fregat-M	Plesetsk 43/4	53S	M	756	I	5	Operational
Kosmos 2529	3 November 2018 20:17	Soyuz-2.1b Fregat-M	Plesetsk 43/4	54S	M	757	II	15	Operational
Kosmos 2534	27 May 2019 06:23	Soyuz-2.1b Fregat-M	Plesetsk 43/4	55S	M	758	II	12	Operational
Kosmos 2544	11 December 2019 08:54	Soyuz-2.1b Fregat-M	Plesetsk 43/3	56S	M	759	I	4	Operational
Kosmos 2545	16 March 2020 18:28	Soyuz-2.1b Fregat-M	Plesetsk 43/4	57S	M	760	III	24	Operational

References

1. Testoyedov, Nikolay (2015-05-18). "Space Navigation in Russia: History of Development" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-07-16. Retrieved 2015-07-15.
2. Krebs, Gunter Dirk (2015-03-06). "Uragan-M (GLONASS-M, 14F113)". Retrieved 2015-07-23.
3. "GLONASS Space Segment Status and Modernization" (PDF). ISS Reshetnev. 2012-11-09. Retrieved 2015-07-16.
4. Zak, Anatoly. "Uragan". RussianSpaceWeb.com. Retrieved 2015-07-23.
5. "Модула-2 в российском космосе" [Modula-2 in the Russian space]. Archived from the original on 2013-12-10. Retrieved 2015-07-23.
6. "The GLONASS system space segment" (PDF). Information Satellite Systems. ISS Reshetnev. March 2008. p. 10. Retrieved 2015-07-23.
7. "Glonass Quicklook". NASA. Retrieved 2015-07-23.
8. Peslyak, Alexey (1 November 2017). "Производитель "Глонасс": в 2021 году создадим импортонезависимый спутник" [GLONASS designer: we will create a completely Russian satellite by 2021] (in Russian). TASS. Retrieved 28 October 2018.
9. Cheberko, Ivan (2015-05-21). "Из спутников "Глонасс" уберут импортные комплектующие" [GLONASS Satellites to Remove Foreign Components] (in Russian). Izvestia. Retrieved 2015-07-16.
10. Johnson, Nicholas L. (November 1994). "GLONASS Spacecraft" (PDF). GPS World. p. 51. Retrieved 2015-07-23.
11. Harvey, Brian (2007). "Military programs". The Rebirth of the Russian Space Program (1st ed.). Germany: Springer. p. 129. ISBN 978-0-387-71354-0.
12. "Satellite-based navigation" (PDF). Information Satellite Systems. ISS Reshetnev. June 2007. p. 7. Retrieved 2015-07-23.
13. "Glonass-K – a prospective satellite of the current GLONASS system" (PDF). Information Satellite Systems. ISS Reshetnev. October 2007. p. 10. Retrieved 2015-07-23.
14. ""Глонасс-М" будет еще не скоро" [GLONASS-M not that soon] (in Russian). Novosti Kosmonavtiki. December 2001. Archived from the original on 23 May 2003. Retrieved 7 November 2018.
15. "Glonass". Russian Forces. 2013-05-01. Retrieved 2013-07-23.
16. "History of GLONASS development". NIS GLONASS. Archived from the original on 2013-02-22. Retrieved 2015-07-23.
17. "Russia clears Proton to resume flying in December". Spaceflight Now. 2010-12-10. Retrieved 2013-07-23.
18. Podvig, Pavel (2011-11-28). "Glonass system is almost complete after successful Glonass-M launch". Retrieved 2015-07-23.
19. Zak, Anatoly. "Proton accident with GLONASS satellites". RussianSpaceWeb.com. Archived from the original on 2015-08-12. Retrieved 2015-07-23.
20. "Производство ГЛОНАСС-М решено прекратить в 2015 году" [Production of GLONASS-M to be finished in 2015]. 2014-03-28. Retrieved 2015-07-16.
21. "Sanctions Delay Russia's GLONASS-K2 Program". GPS World. 2014-12-17. Retrieved 2015-07-16.
22. "First Launch of GLONASS-K2 Satellite Planned for 2018". GPS World. 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-07-16.
23. "Glonass-M – a chapter in the history of satellite navigation". JSC Information Satellite Systems. 2015-07-30. Retrieved 2015-08-13.
24. "Russia stops manufacturing of Glonass-M navigation satellites". ITAR-TASS. 2015-07-30. Retrieved 2015-08-20.
25. "GLONASS Constellation Status".