Glonass-K Replacement Set for Launch Feb. 24

[Satellite TODAY 02-14-11] Russia will launch a new Glonass-K navigation satellite on a Soyuz rocket Feb. 24 from the Plesetsk space center, Russian Ministry of Defense spokesman Alexei Zolotukhin announced.
    Glonass-K will provide four L1 and L2 beams for military and government use and one L3 band for civilian applications. The satellite will have a service life of 10 years.
    Glonass – Russia’s version of the U.S. GPS system – must have 24 operational and three reserve satellites for the network to operate with global coverage. A Dec. 25 launch failure destroyed three Gloonass-K satellites, leaving the constellation with just 22 spacecraft.
    The Russian military said it would launch another three Glonass-M satellites on a Proton rocket later this year to complete the orbiting Glonass grouping.