MOSCOW. Aug 31 (Interfax-AVN) - The Monitor-E satellite lifted to orbit overnight to August 27 from the Plesetsk spaceport in the Arkhangelsk region is now operating normally with no flight control problems, Inessa Glazkova, the Deputy Director General of the Khrunichev research and production center, told a news conference on Wednesday.
"The problems we had at the beginning are now solved. The satellite is now all right, operating in its normal mode," she said.
According to her, the problems that they had are explained by the fact that the satellite is an experimental one.
She recalled that the Monitor-E is an Earth remote probing satellite.
According to her, it carries the payload made at the Krasnogorsk mechanical plant. It is used in the interests of the Russian Ministry of Nature, Russian map-making agency, Russian weather forecast agency and other commercial customers.
She added that the most important thing is that a new type of a spacecraft has been launched. "Despite the fact that the spacecraft weighs merely 750 kg and is therefore a light satellite, it is nowhere inferior to its heavier counterparts in terms of capabilities. It was lifted to orbit by the light-class Rokot launch vehicle which made the process much cheaper," she said.