Russia launches 3 European scientific satellites

Russia on Friday launched Rokot carrier rocket carrying three European scientific satellites, the federal space agency Roscosmos said. Rokot with Briz-KM booster blast off at 16:02 Moscow time (1202 GMT) from Plesetsk site in Northern Russia. It is expected to put the satellites on a designated orbit at 17:33 Moscow time (1333 GMT). The three-stage Rokot carries three identical 472-kg Swarm A,B,C satellites designed to explore the Earth's magnetic field. Initially, the launch was planned on Nov. 14 but re-scheduled upon the request of Swarms' owner, the European Space Agency.