Tag: Russia
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Progress MS-21 launches and docks to ISS on resupply mission
Roscosmos launched Progress MS-21 atop a Soyuz-2.1a rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, in Kazakhstan, at 8:20 PM EDT on Oct. 25 (00:20 UTC on Oct. 26). After launching from Site 31/6 in Baikonur, the Progress MS-21 spacecraft conducted a standard two-day autonomous rendezvous with the International Space Station (ISS). This comes after the then-head of…
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Soyuz-2.1b launches Gonets trio and Skif demo satellite
Four Russian satellites have made their way into orbit, including an experimental mission that could compete with SpaceX’s Starlink internet constellation. The Soyuz-2.1b rocket lifted off from Site 1S at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in eastern Russia at 10:57 PM Moscow Time (19:57 UTC). Onboard were the Gonets-M No. 33, 34, and 35 satellites as well…
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Soyuz-2.1v launches satellite pair after multi-day delay
At 19:20 UTC on Oct. 21, Russia’s Soyuz-2.1v rocket launched from Site 43/4 at Plesetsk Cosmodrome, carrying a classified payload to a Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO). The mission was originally scheduled for launch on Oct. 18 but was delayed three days for unspecified reasons. On board Soyuz-2.1v was a pair of satellites named Kosmos-2561 and Kosmos-2562,…
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Angara 1.2 launches satellite for Russian Aerospace Forces
At 19:55 UTC on Oct. 15, an Angara 1.2 rocket launched from Site 35/1 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome carrying a payload for the Russian military to a Sun-synchronous Orbit (SSO). The exact identity of the payload is not known, other than it received the Kosmos-2560 designation upon reaching orbit. While initially suspected to be a…
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Soyuz launches GLONASS navigation satellite from Plesetsk
Russia has added another satellite to its current satellite navigation network with the successful launch of a Soyuz-2.1b/Fregat rocket. Liftoff occurred at 5:52 AM Moscow Time (02:52 UTC) on Oct. 10 from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in the northwestern part of Russia carrying GLONASS-K1 No. 17. The GLONASS constellation of satellites is very similar to the…
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Expedition 68 underway as Crew-4 prepares to return home
September saw the end of Expedition 67 aboard the International Space Station (ISS) and the handover to Expedition 68. While the expedition number has changed and crew rotation is underway, this has not changed the significance of the work performed by astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the orbiting outpost. At the start of the month, the…
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SpaceX Crew-5 mission docks with ISS
SpaceX and NASA have launched a group of four astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the Crew-5 mission. The crew flew atop a Falcon 9 rocket and the Crew Dragon Endurance spacecraft from Kennedy Space Center’s historic Launch Complex 39A on Wednesday, Oct. 5 at 12:00:57 PM EDT (16:00:57 UTC). With…
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Soyuz MS-22 lofts two Russians and one American to ISS
The Russian federal space agency, Roscosmos, has launched three people to the International Space Station (ISS) from Site 31/6 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Liftoff occurred at 13:54:49 UTC on Wednesday, Sept. 21. The launch marks a resumption of US astronaut flights onboard Russian rockets and is the first of up to three crew…
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Russian cosmonaut pair perform follow-on EVA to outfit robotic arm
Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev and Denis Matveev returned to work outside the International Space Station on Friday as part of an EVA (extravehicular activity, or spacewalk) to continue outfitting the European Robotic Arm (ERA) on the Nauka laboratory module for activation and regular use. Friday’s spacewalk served as a follow-up to an EVA that Artemyev…
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Russian spacewalk to end early as suit power issue appears
A prematurely-ended Russian spacewalk took place at the ISS Wednesday to continue preparations to fully activate the European Robotic Arm (ERA) and commission it for operational use. The ERA, which launched to the station last year, will be used – among other things – to transfer a scientific airlock and radiator to the Nauka module.…