Russian satellite makes possibly unprecedented approach to another spacecraft without permission

By Jackie Wattles, CNN

(CNN) — A rare move by a Russian-made satellite may have brought it within less than a mile of a commercial Earth-observation satellite that may be used to provide national security services to countries such as Ukraine.

It’s not clear what, exactly, the Russian satellite, called Kosmos 2612 or Cosmos 2612, intended to accomplish with its close approach. But the behavior was consistent with rendezvous and proximity operations, or maneuvers carried out in orbit that are designed to bring two spacecraft together, said orbital monitoring services company LeoLabs, which tracks space junk and activity in Earth orbit, in a statement.

“While the intent remains uncertain, the behavior warrants continued monitoring,” LeoLabs added in the statement.

While rendezvousing or docking two vehicles together happens all the time in space — Kosmos 2612’s actions could mark the first time that one spacecraft approached another without permission, noted Jonathan McDowell, an astrophysicist and space analyst, in a post on social media.

The observation satellite, called Iceye-X36, is operated by Iceye, a multinational company with offices in the United States, Finland and several other countries across Europe and Asia.

The company said in a statement Monday, “We are aware of the situation and tracking it closely. Our constellation architecture is designed for continuity and resilience.” A spokesperson declined to comment further.

Iceye-X36 uses synthetic aperture radar, or SAR, technology, which “enables high resolution imagery to be created night or day, regardless of weather conditions,” according to NASA.

Potential objectives

Iceye’s satellite constellation has been used to support “the Ukrainian Armed Forces with persistent situational awareness on tactical timelines,” according to a January news release that detailed an expanded agreement between the company and Ukraine. It was not immediately clear whether ICEYE-X36, specifically, was used to support Ukrainian military operations. Iceye declined to comment.

Signs that Russian military spacecraft may have been seeking to close in on Iceye-operated satellites have emerged since May, when four Russian-controlled satellites adjusted their orbits to align with Iceye-X36, according to a June report from The Royal United Services Institute, or RUSI, a UK-based defense and security research organization.

Then, on October 15, the Kosmos 2612 satellite made a swift approach to Iceye-X36, closing its distance from 350 kilometers (217 miles) to less than 5 kilometers (3 miles) by early morning on October 16, according to LeoLabs.

Kosmos 2612 then appeared to hold its distance, “making small adjustments” to “maintain a close relative position” throughout the weekend, LeoLabs said Monday.

“Analysis indicates that it approached to within roughly 500 meters during part of the event — however, it’s important to note that exact separation estimates carry uncertainty because of the repeated maneuvers and challenging tracking geometry,” LeoLabs said.

CNN has reached out to the Russian Ministry of Defence and Aerospace Forces and Russia’s space agency, Roscosmos, for comment.

By Monday, the Kosmos 2612 satellite had begun to move away from Iceye-X36, LeoLabs said. The maneuvers that the Russian vehicle demonstrated could have been used to “inspect, characterize, shadow, or potentially interfere with another spacecraft,” according to the company.

“While this event, and the capabilities demonstrated, do not establish hostile intent,” LeoLabs said, “It does, however, demonstrate capabilities that could support intelligence collection, on-orbit inspection, coercive signaling, interference, or preparation for future counterspace operations.”

RUSI’s report also detailed several potential objectives that Russia may have by making a close approach with one of Iceye’s satellites. The maneuver could be an intimidation tactic or an attempt to interfere with Iceye’s operations through “jamming,” an interference technique that uses radio noise to prevent satellites from communicating.

“The range of options for the protection of the ICEYE satellite are currently limited,” the RUSI report states, “and the defence and protection of satellites presents a famous dilemma.”

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