A Russian military satellite has moved to within as little as 85 feet of a spacecraft used to provide intelligence to Ukraine, according to analysts—raising concerns about a potential Star Wars-style escalation in orbit.
LeoLabs, a US space-technology company, said Russia’s Kosmos 2612 entered “extreme proximity” to Iceye’s X36 satellite while the two spacecraft were passing over South America.
Over the weekend, Kosmos 2612 made a series of “small adjustments” to maintain a close position relative to the Iceye satellite, LeoLabs said.
RBC-Ukraine reported that the spacecraft came within 85 feet of one another, although other estimates put the separation at approximately 1,640 feet.
LeoLabs said: “Analysis indicates that it approached to within roughly 500 metres during part of the event.
“However, it’s important to note that exact separation estimates carry uncertainty because of the repeated maneuvers and challenging tracking geometry.”
Kosmos 2612 reportedly moved away again on Monday.
The purpose of the maneuver remains unknown, but the close encounter has triggered international concern.
An artist’s concept of a satellite made by Iceye, a space company providing Ukraine with intelligence
Pictured: A screenshot from a short time-lapse showing Iceye-X36 and Kosmos 2612 passing one another over South America
The activity was “consistent with rendezvous and proximity operations”—orbital maneuvers intended to bring two spacecraft close together—CNN reported.
LeoLabs said in a statement: “While the intent remains uncertain, the behavior warrants continued monitoring.”
The company said it could not establish “hostile intent,” but suggested Moscow may have sought to “inspect, characterize, shadow, or potentially interfere with another spacecraft.” Such activity could represent “intelligence collection” and possibly preparation for future counterspace operations, it added.
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The encounter may mark the first known instance of two active satellites approaching one another without the owner of one spacecraft granting permission.
Astronomer Jonathan McDowell said: “New TLEs show that K2612 made a maneuver on Oct 16 and is now stationkeeping within 5 km or less of ICEYE X36.
“To my knowledge this is the first LEO rendezvous of two active satellites where the owner of one of the sats did not give approval.”
Iceye’s spacecraft supports Ukraine’s wartime intelligence operations against Russia.
In January, the company signed an agreement with Ukraine’s defence ministry to “significantly expand their cooperation in space-based intelligence.”
Iceye said: “The agreement ensures that the ministry of defence continues to receive a high volume of high-resolution satellite imagery through Iceye’s world-leading SAR constellation, supporting the Ukrainian Armed Forces with persistent situational awareness on tactical timelines.”
A company spokesman said on Monday: “We are aware of the situation and tracking it closely. Our constellation architecture is designed for continuity and resilience.”
The spokesman declined to provide further details.
Iceye satellites use synthetic aperture radar, or SAR. NASA describes the technology as an active form of data collection in which an instrument emits a pulse of energy and records the amount reflected after it interacts with Earth.
The technology has a broad range of uses, including studying Antarctic icebergs, monitoring oil spills moving into sensitive marshland and mapping Alaska’s wetlands.
Experts say the Kosmos 2612 maneuver is the latest in a series of Russian efforts to approach Iceye satellites.
The Royal United Services Institute, a UK defence think tank, reported earlier this year that four Russian spacecraft moved into alignment with Iceye-X36 in May.
Although LeoLabs said hostile intent had not been established, RUSI suggested the maneuvers may have been intended as an intimidation tactic.
