Uragan satellites

The Soviet military navigation network was to be comprised of Uragan satellites. At the end of the Cold War, the constellation was unclassified under name GLONASS -- a Russian abbreviation of Global Navigation Satellite System. According to ISS Reshetnev, prime developer of Uragan satellites, the company's employee Georgy Kim came up with the GLONASS name for the constellation and it was later applied to the satellites as well.

In depth: Proton crash with GLONASS satellites

GLONASS-K

The third generation of Uragan satellites, a.k.a. GLONASS-K, was launched for the first time in 2011. A lighter, better version of the spacecraft, promises to eventually replace the GLONASS-M satellites which currently comprise Russia's space-based global positioning system.

GLONASS-K2

The latest generation of the Russian satellite navigation network would be represented by the GLONASS-K2 satellite currently in active development. It was expected to feature a new type of navigation signal with the so-called code-protected selection.

NEW, Aug. 7: GLONASS-K2 No. 13L

Deployment of the GLONASS constellation

It took more than a decade after the launch of the first Uragan satellite in 1982 to declare the GLONASS network in limited operation in 1993. According to official information, the network reached a full deployment in 1995 with 24 satellites in three different orbital planes. However, during the 1990s, as operational satellites were failing in orbit, new ones could not be launched due to economic crisis in Russia.

GLONASS deployment missions in detail:

• GLONASS-K No. 12L
• GLONASS-M No. 51
• GLONASS-M No. 53
• GLONASS-M No. 52
• GLONASS-M No. 56
• GLONASS-M No. 57
• GLONASS-M No. 58
• GLONASS-M No. 59
• GLONASS-M No. 60
• GLONASS-K No. 15L