The rocket will be launched by the teams of the Federal Space Agency and the Space Troops. The Space Troops will inject the satellite into the designed orbit.
The Zenit-2 medium-class two-stage rocket developed and produced by the Yuzhnoye design bureau in Dnepropetrovsk (Ukraine) is capable of boosting under 12 metric ton space vehicles into low circular orbits and under 3.5 metric ton space vehicles into highly elliptic orbits.
The Zenit engines run on kerosene and liquid oxygen non-toxic propellants. The fully automated pre-launch processing system provides for the minimal duration of launch preparations, the personnel's entire safety and the vehicle's independence of weather conditions.
The rocket was initially developed as a military satellite launcher to quickly deploy and replenish the grouping of military satellites, and also to boost space vehicles into space. The improved units of its first stage were used as the side units of the Energiya booster and operated successfully during the first two launches.
The Zenit-2 rocket took off for the first time on April 13, 1985. The rocket is periodically used to boost satellites into space on state orders from Russia and Ukraine.
In 2004 the Space Troops of Russia intend to make two space launches with the use of Zenit-2 and Dnepr-1 boosters. Apart from that, a Tsyklon-3 booster is to be launched from Russia's Plesetsk northern space center to inject Ukraine's Sich-1M Earth remote sensing satellite.
