Russia’s only crewed-mission launch site has suffered major damage following a rocket launch on Thursday.
The Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan will be unable to host launches until repairs are made, according to the space agency Roscosmos, marking the first time in decades that Russia has lost the ability to send people to space.
The launch of the Soyuz MS-28 spacecraft was otherwise successful, with none of the crew members injured.
The three-person crew, which included Nasa astronaut Chris Williams and two Russian crewmates, made it safely to the International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday evening.
Roscosmos shared footage of the launch, which showed part of the launchpad collapse into an exhaust trench below as a result of the rocket’s blast.
The space agency said that “damage to a number of elements of the launchpad was detected” following the launch.
“The launch complex’s condition is currently being assessed,” Roscosmos told state media. “All necessary backup components are available for restoration, and the damage will be repaired in the near future.”
The Independent has reached out to Roscosmos for more information.
Analysts have questioned the timeframe for repairs, with critical cabling, sensors and other sections of the launchpad’s service bay believed to be destroyed.
“This is the only launchpad Roscosmos uses for the ISS program, and in the future it was supposed to be used for launches to the Russian Orbital Station,” Russian space commentator Vitaliy Egorov wrote on Telegram.
“In effect, from this day Russia has lost the ability to launch humans into space, something that has not happened since 1961. Now it will be necessary to quickly repair this launchpad or modernise another one.”
The Soyuz crew will spend eight months aboard the ISS before returning to Earth in July 2026.
Russia is currently developing its own independent orbital outpost, called the Russian Orbital Service Station (ROSS), with the ISS set to be decommissioned in 2030.
The first ROSS module is planned for launch in 2027.
LATEST POSTS
- 1
New ‘Cloud-9’ object could reveal the secrets of dark matter - 2What you need to know about flu treatments as cases spike across the US
- 3CDC advisory panel delays vote on hepatitis B vaccines after unruly meeting
- 4The Rhythms of the Street: Shipping's Tune in the Economy's Symphony
- 5The Significance of a Land Lawyer for Your Business
- Plane Passenger Allegedly Includes ‘Bomb Threat’ in Hotspot Network Name, Forces Flight to Make Emergency Landing
- Criminal Guard Lawyer Expenses: What Would it be advisable for you to Hope to Pay?
- Yasser Abu Shabab's killing raises questions about Israel's militia strategy in Gaza
- Porsche May Kill the Electric Boxster Before It Ever Arrives
- Productive CRM Programming for Client Relationship The executives
- Pick Your Favored kind of soup
- Analysis-From 'Icarus bug' to flawed panels: Airbus counts cost of relying on single model
- Deadly heat worldwide prompts $300 million for climate health research at COP30
- Iranian-linked drone attack kills Kurdish couple in northern Iraq
