A Russian satellite shadows a US one for days in an unprecedented manoeuvre
A Russian military satellite, Kosmos-2612, manoeuvred for several days at close range to a commercial satellite operated by a US company that supplies images to Ukraine, coming within less than five kilometres, in what space-tracking specialists describe as an unprecedented approach between active satellites belonging to different owners.
On October 15-19, a Russian military satellite, Kosmos-2612, performed repeated close approaches to a commercial US satellite, Iceye-X36, coming as close as five kilometres, according to space-tracking experts. This unprecedented maneuver, which lasted several days, saw the Russian craft alternating between positions ahead of and behind the US satellite at an altitude of around 540 kilometres.
LeoLabs, an orbital tracking company, stated they had never observed such a sustained deliberate approach before. The US company behind Iceye-X36, Iceye, is aware of the situation and is closely monitoring the incident. Russia has not provided any explanation for the mission of Kosmos-2612, which was launched in April alongside three other satellites that had previously approached a Western spacecraft in May.
This event follows a month after US Air Force Secretary Troy McLean confirmed that the United States possesses "space control weapons in orbit". The 1967 Outer Space Treaty prohibits placing weapons of mass destruction in orbit but does not specifically address conventional weapons.
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