Britain successfully launches first military satellite into space

MOSCOW, August 17 The UK Space Command successfully launched its first domestically-built Tyche reconnaissance satellite last night, which is capable of taking daytime images and videos of Earth, the British government said in a statement on Saturday.
«A UK satellite to support military operations was successfully launched into space last night. The satellite, named Tyche, is the first Space Command satellite capable of taking daytime images and video of the Earth's surface,» the statement said.

The satellite is expected to enhance the country's intelligence capabilities.
«As the conflict in Ukraine has shown, the use of space is critical to military operations. Tyche is the first satellite launched under the Defense Department's Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) space program, which calls for the creation of satellite constellations and supporting ground systems by 2031,» the text says.
It is noted that the spacecraft, in addition to military purposes, will be used for monitoring natural disasters, mapping and tracking the effects of climate change.

The satellite, the size of a washing machine, will operate in low Earth orbit for five years. Tyche was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California by SpaceX on a reusable Falcon 9 rocket as part of the Transporter 11 mission.
British media report that the country has long used its own advanced satellite communications system, Skynet, but in order to gain access to surveillance and reconnaissance imagery, the British armed forces had to ask allies, in particular the United States.