Israeli space agency news

כל הזכיות שמורות לאנדרה אי מאשדוד שכתב את כל החומר
WRITTEN BY ANDRE I ASHDOD FROM SKYSCRAPERCITY FORUMIsraeli space agency news
This is a new thread about Israeli space agency history and news.

here is an information from Wikipedia ,about the agency:

Israeli Space Agency
סוכנות החלל הישראלית (ISA)

Established: 1983
Pri. spaceport: Palmachim
Administrator: Aluf professor Yitzhak Ben Yisrael
Budget: About 1 million USD. 7 million USD allocated for the Venus Project and 70 million USD allocated annually for the Israeli military program.
Website: ISA Home Page
Israeli Space Agency - ISA (Hebrew: סוכנות החלל הישראלית Sohnut HaHalal HaYisraelit) is a governmental body, that coordinates all Israeli programs of Space Research with scientific and commercial purposes. The agency was founded in 1983. It is currently headed by Aluf professor Yitzhak Ben Yisrael.


Vision
The agency vision as defined by the guiding committee in July 27, 2005 states:

"Space research and exploration is an essential instrument for the defense of life on Earth; the lever for technological progress; the key to existing in a modern society; essential for developing an economy based on knowledge; and the central attraction for scientific and qualified human resources."

The vision is "to preserve and broaden the comparative advantage of Israel and to place it among the group of leading countries in the space research and exploration area."

The main goals for vision realization are:

To build and to support satellite systems for space research and for Earth research from space.
To develop technologies, knowledge and scientific infrastructure (including laboratories and human resources) required for space research.
To promote international cooperation in space research and exploration, and for strengthening the national interests of Israel.
To promote ties between Israeli society, space research, and exploration.
ISA has signed cooperation agreements with the space agencies of: USA (NASA), France (CNES), Canada (CSA), India (ISRO), Germany (DLR), Ukraine (NSAU), Russia (RKA), Netherlands (NIVR) and Brazil (AEB).


Shavit launcher
HistoryIn the 70's and 80's Israel developed the infrastructure needed for research and development in space exploration and sciences. This activity was marked with the development of satellites and launching facilities , and had the proclaimed goal of Israel entering the "club" of states with those abilities. In April 1983 the Minister of Science and Technology, Prof. Yuval Ne'eman, announced the formation of an agency which could coordinate and supervise a national space program. In 1984 a National Space Knowledge Center was established in cooperation with Israel Aircraft Industries and a contract was signed between IAI and Ministry of Defence for the development of the needed infrastructure and of Israel's first observation satellite. This came to fruition in 1988 when Israel launched the first in a series of Ofek satellites and thus became one of only few nations in the world possessing an indigenous space launching capability (see timeline of first orbital launches by country). The project management at Israel Aircraft Industries was headed for many years by Dr. Moshe Bar-Lev.


Budget
The budget of the Israeli space agency is only about 1 million USD. This doesn't include funds allocated for the Venus Project (about 7 mlilion USD) and the 70 million USD allocated annually for the Israeli military program. Commercial programs are managed on different budgets.


Projects

Israeli satellites
Ofeq - Series of reconnaissance satellites. The first of these was launched from the Palmachim site on September 19, 1988.
Amos - Series of communications satellites
Eros - Series of observation satellites
Techsat - Researching satellite launched by the Technion
Sloshsat - microsatellite for investigation of dynamics of fluids in microgravity. In association with RAFAEL, Fokker Space laboratories, NIVR, NLR and others.

Satellites in development
Venus - Development, assembly and launching of a scientific microsatellite for Earth research. In association with Israeli Government, IAI, Elbit Systems, RAFAEL and French space agency (CNES).
TAUVEX - Production and launching of a space telescope in UV range for astronomical observation from the space. In association with Israeli Government, Elbit Systems, Indian space agency (ISRO).
TechSAR - a SAR technology demonstrator satellite.
OPsat - the new generation optical observation satellite.
INSAT-1 and INSAT-2 - 2 nano-satellites developed by INSA - Israeli Nano Satellite Assocoiation.

Israeli launcher
Shavit - Series of satellite launchers. It is used to launch Ofeq satellites.

Israeli astronaut

Ilan Ramon - the first Israeli astronautIlan Ramon was Israel's first astronaut. He was a Payload Specialist aboard Space Shuttle mission STS-107 who was killed when the craft disintegrated during reentry into the Earth's atmosphere.

Shavit launcher look like this

__________________
"small step for man,but giant leap for man kind" said neil armstrong ,when he landed on the moon

Here is a video of Ofeq 7 intelligence satellite launch (June 13,2007)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cywqMys_XHE

here is another video of Ofeq 5 intelligence satellite launch, that was launched in May 28 ,2002

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XhZXjP_yudc
__________________
"small step for man,but giant leap for man kind" said neil armstrong ,when he landed on the moon.

Ofeq 1&2 ,two first israeli satellites
OFEQ 1


OFEQ 1 was launched in 19 september 1988 by a Shavit launcher from the Palamchim launch site and ushered the Israeli space age. OFEQ 1 entered a low earth orbit(LEO) of 248*1150km with a declination of 43 deg. , it stayed in orbit for 118 days although its expected lifespan was one month .

OFEQ 1 was produced by MBT/IAI as main contractors , it was used to test technologies used in the satellite , launcher and ground track and control station . OFEQ 1 showed the maturity of the Israeli space industry to design , built , launch and control a satellite.

OFEQ 2

OFEQ 2 was launched on April 3rd 1990 by the Shavit launcher , it entered a LEO of 210*1580km .

OFEQ 2 stayed in orbit for 40 days , it too was designed to test technologies while the satellite was an improved OFEQ 1.
__________________
"small step for man,but giant leap for man kind" said neil armstrong ,when he landed on the moon.

OFEQ 3



OFEQ 3 was launched on April 15th 1995 by the Shavit improved launcher from the Palamachim site . It entered a LEO of 368*729km with a declination 37 deg. , it orbits earth once every 90 minutes .

OFEQ 3 is a 2nd generation satellite based on the OFEQ 1 Satellite , it has an advanced navigation system and its projected life span was 2 years currently its still in orbit .
The payload that OFEQ 3 carried wasn't clear at first and the official version was that it is a test satellite like its predecessor.

The truth is that it is a spy satellite carrying the ERMS CCD with a resolution of up to 2.5 meters , thus Israel has an operational spy satellite although since it is a LEO satellite it isn't always in contact with Israel . OFEQ 3 is the proto type for the EROS Satellite net which will provide 24 hour contact with Israel. was the first operational Israeli satellite with reconnaissance (photography) capabilities. It weighed 225 kg and had a perigee of 369 km and was launched on a new version of Shavit


Payload Weight 36 kg
Satellite Weight 189 kg
Total Weight 225 kg
Height 2.3 meters
Diameter Base 1.2 meters
Diameter Top 0.7 meters
Solar panels size 3.6 squared meters
Power consumption 180 Watts
Telemetry data rate 15 Kbit/second
Telecommand data rate 5 Kbits/second
Attitude control accuracy 0.01 Degrees
__________________
"small step for man,but giant leap for man kind" said neil armstrong ,when he landed on the moon.

Ofeq 4

launched January 22, 1998, did not achieve earth orbit due to a launcher failure and was lost.
__________________
"small step for man,but giant leap for man kind" said neil armstrong ,when he landed on the moon.

OFEQ 5




in this pic the Ofeq 5 satellite is inside the Shavit rocket launcher .





was launched 28 May 2002. The 300 kg Ofeq 5 orbited the earth on a course with a perigee of 262 km and an apogee of 774 km, bent around 143.5 degrees. During the course of its mission, its perigee was raised to 369 km and its apogee was lowered on 771 kilometers, in an attempt to prolong the satellite's lifespan. Some observers believe that the 300 kg weight of the satellite, combined with the additional propulsive requirements of the retrograde orbit, constitute a de facto demonstration of the Shavit's ICBM potential

Ofeq 6
launched September 6, 2004 encountered another launcher failure, failed to achieve low earth orbit and also crashed to the sea. The launcher failure was due to the third stage of the Shavit launcher

Ofek-7
was launched by a Shavit space launch vehicle on June 11, 2007. Equipped with advanced technology and a series of new enhancements to provide improved imagery, it is placed into a elliptical orbit of 300x600 kilometers. Three days after its launch, IAI/MBT Space Division received the first images taken by the satellite. The Ofek 7 is a follow-on spacecraft to Ofek 5 that was placed into orbit in 2002.

Here is a pic of it's launch


and here is a link to an article about i'ts launch(in Hebrew)

www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-3409576,00.html

Shavit launch vehicle

Shavit (Hebrew: "comet" - שביט) or RSA-3 is a space launch vehicle produced by Israel and South Africa[1] to launch small satellites into low earth orbit. It was first launched on September 19, 1988 (carrying an Ofeq satellite payload), making Israel the eighth country to have a space launch capability. Shavit rockets are launched from the seashore near Palmachim by the Israeli Space Agency into a retrograde orbit over the Mediterranean Sea to prevent debris coming down in populated areas and also to avoid flying over nations hostile to Israel to the east; this results in a lower payload-to-orbit than east-directed launches would allow. The launcher consists of three stages powered by solid fuel rocket motors, with an optional liquid fuel fourth stage, and is manufactured by IAI. Shavit is based on the Jericho II intermediate-range ballistic missile.

and here it's upper stage engine

Palmachim Airbase

Palmachim Air Force Base is located near the city of Rishon LeZion, adjacent to Yavne. It is named after the Kibbutz Palmachim on the Mediterranean shore.

The base is home to several IAF helicopter and UAV squadrons, and serves as a rocket launch site for the Arrow missile.[1] Palmachim is also used to launch the Shavit space launch vehicle into retrograde orbit by launching over the Mediterranean, acting as Israel's primary spaceport. This ensures that rocket debris falls into water, and that the rocket does not fire over regional countries near Israel. Recent launches include:

11 June 2007 - Ofeq 7 satellite[2]
In July, 2007, it was agreed that once Sde Dov Airport in Tel Aviv was closed, its military terminal would be transferred to Palmachim

built by the IDF/AF in the 1970s, originally as a military test site for Israeli designed missiles and also later used as a helicopter base. The misiles were fired towards the sea. Situated north north-east of Ashdod. Location coordinates: N31 55 E034 44, elevation: 98 ft (30 m). One runway: 03/21 degrees of 6562 ft (2000 m) length. Currently home to 124, 151, 160, 161, 193, 194 and 200 squadrons.
Here it's map


__________________
"small step for man,but giant leap for man kind" said neil armstrong ,when he landed on the moon