Palmachim Credit - © Mark Wade

Israeli coastal missile test site from which the Shavit satellite launch vehicle is also launched. A due-west launch over the Mediterranean is required to avoid overflying Arab countries, resulting in unique orbital inclinations and directions.

The site was known to have been used for 40 launches from 1987 to 2007.

• IAFTR - Latitude: 31.9000 deg. Longitude: 34.6000 deg. Used by: Arrow. Sea Launch Area, Palmachim Beach

• SH - Latitude: 31.8848 deg. Longitude: 34.6802 deg. Shavit pad, Palmachim Beach

1987 May 1 - Launch Vehicle: Jericho. Test mission Agency: IDF. Apogee: 300 km (180 mi).

1988 January 1 - Launch Vehicle: Jericho. Agency: IDF. Apogee: 300 km (180 mi).

1988 September 19 - 09:32 GMT - Launch Vehicle: Shavit. LV Model: Shavit . Shaviyt 1 Ofeq-1 Mass: 155 kg (341 lb). Spacecraft: Ofeq 1-2. Agency: Israeli Space Agency. Perigee: 250 km (150 mi). Apogee: 1,149 km (713 mi). Inclination: 142.90 deg. Period: 98.80 min. First Israeli launch; possibly experimental surveillance mission. Experimental satellite 'Offeq-1'. Launch time 0934 GMT. Location: site on the coast south of Tel-Aviv. Launching organization: Israel Aircraft Industries, Ltd (IAI) and Israeli Space Agency (ISA). Function: 1) Experimentation in generation of solar power; 2) Experimentation in transmission reception from space; 3) Verification of system's ability to withstand vacuum and weightless conditions; 4) Data collection on space environment conditions and Earth's magnetic field.

1989 September 14 - Launch Vehicle: Jericho. Test mission Agency: Israel. Apogee: 300 km (180 mi).

1990 April 3 - 12:02 GMT - Launch Vehicle: Shavit. LV Model: Shavit . Shaviyt 2 Ofeq-2 Mass: 160 kg (350 lb). Spacecraft: Ofeq 1-2. Agency: Israeli Space Agency. Perigee: 149 km (92 mi). Apogee: 251 km (155 mi). Inclination: 143.20 deg. Period: 88.50 min. Communication experiments.

1994 September 15 - Launch Vehicle: Jericho. LV Model: Jericho 2 . Jericho II 3? FAILURE: Failure. 'Ofeq? Agency: ISA. Apogee: 300 km (180 mi).

1995 April 5 - 11:16 GMT - Launch Vehicle: Shavit. LV Model: Shavit 1 . Shaviyt 1 3 Ofeq-3 Mass: 189 kg (416 lb). Spacecraft: Ofeq 3. Agency: Israeli Space Agency. Perigee: 366 km (227 mi). Apogee: 694 km (431 mi). Inclination: 143.40 deg. Period: 94.50 min.

1995 July 30 - Launch Vehicle: Arrow. Arrow 2 F1 Test mission Agency: IAI. Apogee: 20 km (12 mi).

1996 February 20 - Launch Vehicle: Arrow. Arrow 2 F2 Test mission Agency: IAI. Apogee: 80 km (49 mi).

1996 August 20 - Launch Vehicle: Arrow. Arrow 2 F3 ATBM test Agency: IAI. Apogee: 80 km (49 mi).

1997 March 11 - Launch Vehicle: Arrow. Arrow 2 F4 ATBM test Agency: IAI. Apogee: 80 km (49 mi).

1997 August 19 - 08:29 GMT - Launch Vehicle: Arrow. Arrow 2 F5 ATBM test Agency: IAI. Apogee: 80 km (49 mi).

1998 January 22 - 12:56 GMT - Launch Vehicle: Shavit. LV Model: Shavit 1 . Shaviyt 1 4 FAILURE: Launch vehicle failed during second stage burn. Ofeq-4 Spacecraft: Ofeq 3. Agency: Israeli Space Agency. Fell in Mediterranean Sea.

1998 September 14 - 12:41 GMT - Launch Vehicle: Arrow. Arrow 2 F6 ATBM test Agency: IAI. Apogee: 80 km (49 mi).

1999 November 1 - 09:42 GMT - Launch Vehicle: Arrow. Arrow 2 F7 ATBM test Agency: IAI. Apogee: 80 km (49 mi).

2000 September 14 - Launch Vehicle: Arrow. Arrow 2 F8 AST-5 Black Sparrow Agency: IAI. Apogee: 80 km (49 mi).

2001 June 27 - Launch Vehicle: Jericho. Operational test Agency: IDF. Apogee: 100 km (60 mi).

2001 August 27 - 10:50 GMT - Launch Vehicle: Arrow. AST-6 Black Sparrow Agency: IAI. Apogee: 100 km (60 mi).

2002 May 28 - 15:25 GMT - Launch Vehicle: Shavit. LV Model: Shavit 1 . Shaviyt 1 5 Ofeq-5 Mass: 300 kg (660 lb). Spacecraft: Ofeq 5. Agency: Tsahal (Israel). Perigee: 370 km (220 mi). Apogee: 757 km (470 mi). Inclination: 143.50 deg. Period: 95.90 min. Military Observation satellite. Return to flight of the Shavit booster following a lauanch failure. Launch delayed from third quarter 2001. The three-stage Shavit rocket took off from Palmachim Air Force Base on the Israeli coast and flew westward to put the satellite in a retrograde orbit. The AUS-51 third stage solid motor entered a 262 x 774 km x 143.5 deg orbit and separated from the Ofeq satellite. Both coasted up to apogee at around 1620 UTC when Ofeq made a burn to increase its velocity by 33 m/s, raising the orbit to 369 x 771 km x 143.5 deg.

2003 January 5 - 14:37 GMT - Launch Vehicle: Arrow. Arrow 2 F10? AST-8 ATBM test Agency: IAI. Apogee: 30 km (18 mi).

2003 December 16 - Launch Vehicle: Arrow. Arrow 2 F11 AST-9 Black Sparrow Agency: IAI. Apogee: 30 km (18 mi).

2004 September 6 - Launch Vehicle: Shavit. LV Model: Shavit 1 . Shaviyt 1 6 FAILURE: Third stage orientation failure at 270 seconds into the flight. Ofeq-6 Mass: 300 kg (660 lb). Spacecraft: Ofeq 5. Agency: Tsahal. Military observation satellite failed to reach orbit. Finanical loss estimated by Israeli press as $ 100 million.

2005 December 2 - 08:28 GMT - Launch Vehicle: Arrow. Arrow 2 F14 BLK-3 AST? Black Sparrow Agency: IAI. Apogee: 40 km (24 mi).

2007 February 11 - 18:18 GMT - Launch Vehicle: Arrow. Arrow 2 M4 AST Black Sparrow Agency: IAI. Apogee: 40 km (24 mi).

2007 March 26 - Launch Vehicle: Arrow. Agency: IAI. Apogee: 40 km (24 mi).