Shavit

Shavit is a launch vehicle produced by Israel. It was first launched on September 19, 1988, allowing Israel to become the eighth country to have a space launch capability. Shavit was based on the Jericho II intermediate range ballistic missile and is launched from the Negev desert by the Israel Space Agency into a retrograde orbit to prevent debris from landing in Arab territory. Shavit translates to Comet in English.