Russia launches new military asset into orbit (VIDEO)
Russia has launched a classified military payload into space, carrying out its second orbital mission in a week.
The military launch took place overnight from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in Russia’s Arkhangelsk Region and was conducted by the country’s aerospace forces.
The exact nature of the payload was not disclosed, though it appears to be a satellite. Officials said the spacecraft successfully established communications with ground control after reaching orbit.
A medium-lift Soyuz-2.1b rocket was used for the mission, according to the Defense Ministry and space agency Roscosmos.
The launch comes as Russia is expanding its satellite capabilities, including the Rassvet (“Dawn”) low-orbit broadband constellation developed by private aerospace firm Bureau 1440. Moscow plans to have 156 Rassvet satellites in orbit by the end of 2026 and around 900 by 2035.
President Vladimir Putin has said that the network “doesn’t fall short of” Elon Musk’s Starlink and “may even surpass it in some ways.” Moscow is also developing heavy attack drones with satellite-based control, which could make them more resistant to electronic warfare and jamming.
On Wednesday, Roscosmos carried out another launch using a Soyuz-2.1b rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, sending the Progress MS-35 cargo spacecraft into orbit with 2.4 tons of supplies for the International Space Station (ISS).
The unmanned freighter is scheduled to dock with the station over the weekend.
