Sfera ('sphere') were Soviet military geodetic satellites. Although Sfera data was applied to purely scientific problems such as measuring continental drift, it was used mostly by the Red Army General Staff in military topographical research. This work, in turn, allowed improved accuracy for long range weapons. Flight tests for Sfera took place in 1968–1972 and operational launches in 1973–1980, using Cosmos-3M launch vehicles from Plesetsk.