Two Russian military satellites are moving towards the orbit of the commercial radar satellite ICEYE-X37, according to orbital-tracking specialists. Reuters reported the observations on November 5, citing data from US-based COMSPOC among other sources.
The observations follow an October close approach by Russia's Kosmos-2612 satellite to another ICEYE spacecraft, ICEYE-X36. Analysts who examined the October manoeuvres say they may have been a rehearsal for interfering with a satellite, but also identify other possible purposes for such approaches, including surveillance and technical intelligence gathering.
ICEYE technology is also used for monitoring in Ukraine's interests. However, the orbital movements alone do not demonstrate that ICEYE-X37 has been attacked or damaged, nor do they reveal the operators' intentions.