Trajectory & orbital insertion
Ascent path is a representation — true ascent telemetry isn’t public.
Provider
Israeli Space Agency
Provider type
Government
Orbit
LEO
Mission type
Government/Top Secret
Launch site
Israel
Date
Thu, 22 Jan 1998 12:56:00 GMT
Orbital launch #
#4210 ever
Mission
Intended for surveillance of Israel's neighbours, the Ofeq series is unusual in having a retrograde orbit. This is due to the geographical location of Israel, which gives only an unobstructed launch path over the mediterranean sea. It is similar to the EROS-A civilian Earth observation satellite. Ofeq 4 (which was possibly the prototype EROS-A satellite) was lost in an launch failure in early 1998.