MOSCOW, December 25 (RIA Novosti) - A Proton-M carrier rocket with three Glonass satellites on board was launched at 10:32 p.m. Moscow time (7:32 p.m. GMT) on Tuesday from the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan, the Federal Space Agency said.

"The satellite vehicles are scheduled to separate from the upper-stage rocket at 2:24 a.m. Moscow time (11:24 p.m. GMT)," an agency spokesman said.

The three satellites were launched for the first time on board an improved Proton-M carrier rocket to join the existing satellite constellation, which comprises 15 operational satellites.

Glonass (Global Navigation Satellite System) is the Russian equivalent of the U.S. Global Positioning System (GPS), which is designed for both military and civilian use, and allows users to identify their positions in real time.