MOSCOW (BNS): Russia successfully orbited three Glonass navigation satellites using Proton-M rocket from the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan on Tuesday, a media report said.

“Stable telemetric communication was established with the satellites, which were orbited at 3:51 Moscow time (0:51 GMT)," RIA Novosti quoted Alexei Zolotukhin as saying.

GLONASS – Global Navigation Satellite System – is an alternative and complementary system to the US’ Global Positioning System, China’s Compass navigation system, and the planned Galileo positioning system of the European Union.

Designed for both military and civilian purposes, GLONASS enables its users to determine their positions within a few meters.

The system requires 18 satellites for continuous navigation services covering the entire Russian Federation, and 24 satellites to provide services worldwide.