Military Procurement International Vol. 19, No. 7, April 1, 2009
Copyright DAPSS S.A., 200
9, Switzerland. It is unlawful to reproduce any of this publication without written permission from the publisher.
INDIA
Acquisition of Israeli spy satellite
Under a contract of undisclosed value, the Indian Armed Forces have acquired a 300kg Radar Imaging Satellite (RISAT-2) from MBT Space Division, a subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries, that can use its Elta Systems Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) to see through clouds and operate by day and night in all weathers. The satellite is currently being mated to the Indian Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), for launch in the next few weeks from the space port in Sriharikota.
India’s existing satellites become blinded at night and by heavy clouds in the monsoon season. In January 2008, India launched Israel’s TECSAR reconnaissance satellite, which has a resolution of almost 10cm, meaning it can read car number plates (MPI February 1, 2008, page 10).