Mastodawn

RE: https://mastodon.social/@arstechnica/115617074044433617

#Russia’s invasion of #Ukraine has taken Russian rockets off the table for many Western satellite operators. #China has an increasing number of government and commercial options, and #India’s launch offerings are growing as well. Russia almost certainly can’t beat the reusable #Falcon9 booster offered by #SpaceX

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Spaceflight 🚀Nov 28

RE: https://mastodon.social/@arstechnica/115628222972218040

Site 31* at #Baikonur is the country’s only pad presently configured to handle launches of the #Soyuz rocket. A platform located beneath the rocket with a mass of about 20 metric tons was apparently not secured prior to launch, and the thrust of the vehicle ejected it into the flame trench.

* 🗺️ https://graphhopper.com/maps/?point=Launchpad+31/6&layer=OpenStreetMap

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Spaceflight 🚀Dec 2

🇷🇺 #Baikonur : There's significant #damage to the maintenance cabin, which is too extensive to allow for repairs. The only way to resume launches is to install a spare maintenance cabin or construct a new one. Similar service cabins were manufactured recently for other #Soyuz launch complexes at the #Guiana Space Center and #Vostochny Cosmodrome. The production of each cabin took around two years ⏳🥱 to complete https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2025/11/site-31-accident/

Russia left without access to ISS following structure collapse at Baikonur launch site - NASASpaceFlight.com

On Nov. 27, after the launch of the Soyuz 2.1a rocket with the Soyuz MS-28…

NASASpaceFlight.com

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Spaceflight 🚀

#Russia launched a #Soyuz rocket from a repaired launch pad at its #Baikonur cosmodrome https://www.reuters.com/science/russia-launches-first-rocket-repaired-baikonur-launch-pad-2026-03-22/