Residents across Israel reported seeing what looked like an interceptor launched from the Palmachim Air Base late Tuesday night. The Defense Ministry quickly clarified that the streak in the sky was the successful launch of the Ofek 19 reconnaissance satellite.
According to reports sent to Ynet’s “Red Mail” tip line, the launch was visible from multiple cities and towns in central Israel, including Ramat Gan, Ashdod, Petah Tikva and Rehovot.
Watch footage of the rare launch:
Launch of the Ofek 19 reconnaissance satellite
(Video: Sapir Levin, Roni Yoel, Rona Ashouri, Idan Lupo, David Rambi, Viki, Shek, Yaniv Cafe)
“The Directorate of Defense Research and Development (DDR&D) Space Program Office in the Israel Ministry of Defense (IMOD), the IDF, and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) successfully launched the Ofek 19 satellite into space today (Tuesday, September 2nd, 2025) at 22:30 IST,” the ministry said in a statement. "The launch was carried out from an undisclosed test site by a Shavit launcher."
Ofek 19 is a highly advanced SAR (synthetic aperture radar) observation satellite with enhanced capabilities. Upon entering Earth’s orbit, the satellite will undergo a series of designated tests to assess its integrity and performance, according to the Defense Ministry.
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The launch of the Ofek 19 as seen from the balcony of a nearby apartment
(Photo: Rona Ashouri)
The defense space program is led by the DDR&D’s Space Program Office and includes various stakeholders within the IDF, including Unit 9900 of Military Intelligence and the Air Force. Israel Aerospace Industries developed and manufactured both the satellite and the launcher as the project’s prime contractor. The company’s Missiles and Space Systems division led the project through its SPACE division, in cooperation with the ELTA Group, which built the payload, and IAI’s MLM Division, which led the launcher’s development together with Tomer Ltd. and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, who manufactured the launch vehicle’s rocket engines.
Israel previously launched the Ofek 13 reconnaissance satellite in March 2023. The country was the seventh in the world to achieve full space capability — launch and satellite development — and is now one of a select group of nations with that ability, alongside the United States, Russia, China, France, Italy, Britain, India, South Korea, North Korea, Japan, Ukraine and Iran.
Israel’s first observation satellite, Ofek 1, was launched on Sept. 19, 1988. Under strict secrecy, the country developed satellite capabilities to maintain a strategic edge in the region and bolster its intelligence gathering. In 2020, Israel carried out its most recent Ofek launch before Tuesday night’s, when it sent Ofek 16 into orbit.