Three Glonass-M spacecraft Cosmos 2459 (Glonass 731), Cosmos 2461 (Glonass 735) and Cosmos 2460 (Glonass 732) were added to the Russian global navigation satellite system. They were launched by a Proton-M rocket with a Block DM upper stage from Baikonur on 01 March 2010 at 21:19 UT. Each spacecraft has a mass of 1360 kg and are designed to last seven years. The GLONASS system requires satellites in three orbital planes and global service requires 24 satellites. As of 01 March 2010 the constellation consisted of 18 operational satellites. These additions to the constellation occupy the third plane, in orbital slots 22, 24, and 23, respectively.
Alternate Names
Glonass 731
Glonass 732
Glonass 735
Facts in Brief
Launch Date: 2010-03-01
Launch Vehicle: Proton-M
Launch Site: Tyuratam (Baikonur Cosmodrome), Kazakhstan