
A launch pad at Russia’s main space complex was damaged during Thursday’s launch of a mission carrying two Russians and an American to the International Space Station, Moscow’s space agency announced.
The Soyuz MS-28 spacecraft successfully docked with the space station and the three crew members had boarded, Roscosmos said.
But a post-launch inspection at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan revealed “damage to several elements of the launch pad,” according to a statement from Roscosmos, which still uses the space facility in its former Soviet neighbor.
“An assessment of the condition of the launch complex is currently underway,” it said, adding that all parts needed to repair the pad are available.
“The damage will be repaired in the near future.”
The launch pad contains support systems for the rocket and a structure that allows cosmonauts to access their capsule as it sits atop a Soyuz rocket.
Launch pads must be capable of withstanding extreme heat, air pressure and vibrations as a rocket takes flight.
Russian analysts said repairs to the launch pad could take a week or longer. And any lengthy delay could leave Russia unable to launch missions to the space station, they said.
“In the worst case this could seriously affect the rotation of crewed missions and cargo flights to the ISS,” analyst and blogger Georgy Trishkin wrote on Telegram.
Typically, ISS crew are launched roughly every six months from Baikonur.
“This is the only launch pad Roscosmos uses for the ISS program, and in the future it was supposed to be used for launches to the Russian Orbital Station,” 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 launch table or modernize another one,” Egorov wrote.
Besides Russia’s Soyuz craft, NASA uses SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft to take crew to the ISS.
The three men aboard the mission that lifted off Thursday join seven other crew already orbiting on the ISS.
Three are scheduled to return to Earth by December 8, according to NASA.
For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
NEUESTE BEITRÄGE
- 1
the Wild in Style: The Reduced Portage Mustang's Bold Heritage08.11.2023 - 2
5 Great Home Remodel Administrations With Green Arrangements In 202405.06.2024 - 3
The 15 Most Compelling Books in History06.07.2023 - 4
Colleges say foreign students feel 'unwelcome' in the U.S. amid big drop in international enrollment, new survey finds17.11.2025 - 5
New movies to watch this weekend: See 'The Drama' in theaters, rent 'Wuthering Heights,' stream 'Pizza Movie' on Hulu03.04.2026
Ähnliche Artikel
Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson opens up about being the 'new guy' again — and why this moment feels like a new life18.12.2025
How a Snake That Eats Cobras Redefined the Meaning of ‘King’02.01.2026
EU health regulator urges immediate vaccinations amid early surge in flu cases20.11.2025
NASA begins fueling rocket to launch astronauts on the first lunar trip in half a century01.04.2026
New study measures titanium in Apollo rock to uncover Moon’s early chemistry27.03.2026
Clovis Unified students spend spring break traveling through China02.04.2026
Elvis Presley's Infamous Pantera Shooting13.12.2025
How mountain terraces have helped Indigenous peoples live with climate uncertainty15.01.2026
10 times the sky amazed us in 202522.12.2025
Smartwatches: Remain Associated and Dynamic06.06.2024














