The Russian strategic nuclear forces blog is reporting that the launch of a new Russian optical reconnaissance satellite, known as Persona, has been postponed to the first quarter of 2008. According to Gen.-Col. Vladimir Popovkin, the commander of the Space Forces, the delay is needed to complete work on the satellite. The launch was originally scheduled for the third quarter of 2007. Popovkin reported that the launcher that will be used in the launch, Soyuz-2.1b, is ready for the flight.
The program seems to be aimed at development of an electronic optical reconnaissance satellite that would include a telescope/sensor package known as 17V321, which is being built at LOMO. This package was reported to be a modification of the 17V317 one, installed on Arkon satellites. The Persona program, however, is quite separate from Arkon.
Here is where accounts begin to differ. The LOMO site seems to suggest that Persona is part of the Condor program, which includes a satellite developed at NPO Mashinostroyeniye to be deployed by the Strela launcher. Other sources suggest that the new telescope will be deployed on a satellite that is being built by TsSKB in Samara and which would be a modified Resurs-DK spacecraft (which is yet to be flown itself).
