February 1, 2026
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  • [ January 30, 2026 ] Cold weather delays earliest Artemis 2 launch opportunity Falcon 9
  • [ January 30, 2026 ] SpaceX launches overnight Starlink flight as it unveils new ‘Stargaze’ space situational awareness system Falcon 9
  • [ January 29, 2026 ] SpaceX launches 11,000th Starlink satellite to date on Thursday Falcon 9
  • [ January 26, 2026 ] SpaceX launches GPS 3 satellite following switch from ULA Vulcan rocket Falcon 9
  • [ January 25, 2026 ] SpaceX launches 25 Starlink satellites to polar, low Earth orbit Falcon 9

Rockot

Mission Reports

Photos: Sentinel 5P environmental satellite prepared for liftoff

October 13, 2017 Stephen Clark

Europe’s Sentinel 5P satellite, fitted with a Dutch-developed spectrometer to measure gases in Earth’s atmosphere, was fueled and mated to its Russian Rockot booster over the last month at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome, a military complex around 500 miles (800 kilometers) north of Moscow.

Mission Reports

Live coverage: European environmental satellite launches from Russia

October 13, 2017 Stephen Clark

A modified Russian missile built for nuclear war blasted off on a peaceful mission Friday, targeting placement of a European Earth observation satellite in orbit to measure atmospheric chemistry and global air quality. Liftoff from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northern Russia occurred at 0927 GMT (5:27 a.m. EDT).

News

Russian satellite launched to measure Earth’s size and shape

June 4, 2016 Stephen Clark

A Russian military spacecraft designed to map variations in Earth’s gravity field, rotation and tectonic movement reached orbit Sunday after a launch aboard a modified Soviet-era missile that spawned an uproar from Canadian environmentalists over where the rocket would drop a potentially toxic booster stage.

News

Look back on the blastoff of a Russian missile-turned-launcher

February 17, 2016 Stephen Clark

A Soviet-era missile originally built to deliver nuclear warheads to the United States in wartime fired into space for a much different purpose Tuesday, carrying a European environmental satellite into orbit to help track the effects of climate change.

News

European oceanography satellite rides Russian rocket into orbit

February 16, 2016 Stephen Clark

Soaring into the night sky over a guarded Russian military base, a 1.2-ton European satellite rocketed into orbit Tuesday to regularly measure how the world’s oceans and ice sheets respond to climate change and drive global weather patterns.

Mission Reports

Live coverage: European ocean survey satellite launches from Russia

February 16, 2016 Stephen Clark

A European environmental satellite launched Tuesday from Russia’s Plesetsk Cosmodrome to begin a mission of at least seven years measuring the height, color and temperature of the world’s oceans. The Sentinel 3A spacecraft lifted off aboard a Rockot booster at 1757 GMT (12:57 p.m. EST).

News

Satellite primed for launch to survey oceans, ice sheets

February 15, 2016 Stephen Clark

Russian rocket technicians fueled a decommissioned ballistic missile with propellants Monday, a day ahead of the launch of a European satellite primed to observe the planet’s oceans.

News

Photos: Sentinel 3A prepared for liftoff

February 15, 2016 Stephen Clark

Europe’s Sentinel 3A satellite, designed for real-time surveys of the world’s oceans, ice sheets, lakes and rivers, is attached to a decommissioned Russian nuclear missile for launch Tuesday. These photos show the spacecraft’s final prelaunch preparations.

News

Modified missile launches three Russian satellites

September 24, 2015 Stephen Clark

Three Russian military satellites arrived in orbit Wednesday after taking off from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome aboard a Rockot launch vehicle, a decommissioned ballistic missile modified for space applications.

News

Rockot launcher deploys Russian data relay satellites

March 31, 2015 Stephen Clark

Three small satellites launched from Russia’s Plesetsk Cosmdorome into a 930-mile-high orbit Tuesday, flying into space aboard a Rockot launcher to relay emails, technical data and other messages between remote users.

Posts pagination

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News Headlines

  • Cold weather delays earliest Artemis 2 launch opportunity
    January 30, 2026
  • SpaceX launches overnight Starlink flight as it unveils new ‘Stargaze’ space situational awareness system
    January 30, 2026
  • SpaceX launches 11,000th Starlink satellite to date on Thursday
    January 29, 2026
  • SpaceX launches GPS 3 satellite following switch from ULA Vulcan rocket
    January 26, 2026
  • SpaceX launches 25 Starlink satellites to polar, low Earth orbit
    January 25, 2026
  • Eastern Range ready for same day fueling of Space Launch System, Vulcan rockets
    January 23, 2026
  • SpaceX launches first West Coast Starlink mission of 2026
    January 21, 2026
  • SpaceX launches Sunday sunset Starlink mission from Cape Canaveral
    January 18, 2026
  • NRO, SpaceX launch reconnaissance satellites from Vandenberg
    January 16, 2026
  • Crew 11 safely splashes down after shortened mission
    January 15, 2026
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