South Korea puts second military spy (reconnaissance) satellite successfully into orbit | Current Affairs | Vision IAS
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    South Korea puts second military spy (reconnaissance) satellite successfully into orbit

    Posted 18 Apr 2024

    2 min read

    • The satellite was launched by the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. 
      • Satellite is equipped with synthetic aperture radar (SAR) capable of producing images regardless of weather conditions.

     

    • About Spy or Reconnaissance satellite
      • It provides intelligence information on the military activities of foreign countries. 
      • It can be either a communications satellite or an Earth observation satellite.
      • It can pick up and record radio and radar transmissions while passing over a country.
      • Major Types
        • Optical-imaging satellites: They have light sensors that detect missile launches and see enemy weapons on the ground.
        • Radar-imaging satellites: They can observe the Earth using radar technologies even during cloud cover. 
        • Signals-intelligence or ferret satellites:  They capture the radio and microwave transmissions. 

     

    • Countries like US [Keyhole series (KH)], China (Yaogan series), Russia (Persona series) etc. have launched many reconnaissance satellites. 
      • Radar Imaging Satellite – 2 (RISAT-2) is generally considered to be India’s reconnaissance satellite. It was equipped with SAR.

     

    • Concerns: 
      • Militarization of space, 
      • Promotes mistrust among the countries (E.g. North and South Korea), 
      • Can be used as dual used technology (as orbital weapon by placing warheads on a low orbit satellite to be launched at a ground target), etc. 
      • China’s reconnaissance satellite can collect crucial military information about India, etc. 
    • Tags :
    • Reconnaissance Satellite
    • Spy Satellite
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