Plesetsk Cosmodrome | |
|---|---|
Космодром «Плесецк» | |
| Russia | |
 Great emblem of the Plesetsk Cosmodrome | |
| Site information | |
| Type | Spaceport |
| Owner | Russian Ministry Of Defence |
| Controlled by | Russian Space Forces |
| Open to the public | No |
| Location | |
  Plesetsk Cosmodrome Location in Russia Show map of Russia Plesetsk Cosmodrome Location in Arkhangelsk Oblast Show map of Arkhangelsk Oblast | |
| Coordinates | 62°55′32″N40°34′40″E / 62.92556°N 40.57778°E /62.92556; 40.57778 |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1957 (1957) |
| In use | 1957–present |
Plesetsk Cosmodrome (Russian:Космодром «Плесецк»,romanized: Kosmodrom "Plesetsk") is a Russianspaceport located inMirny, Arkhangelsk Oblast, near the town ofPlesetsk, from which it takes its name. Until 2025 and the commissioning of theAndøya base in Norway, it was the only operational orbital spaceport in Europe and the northernmost spaceport in the world. Originally developed as anintercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) site for theR-7 missile, its strategic location approximately 800 kilometres (500 mi) north ofMoscow was key to its selection.
Due to its high latitude, Plesetsk is particularly suited for specific types of satellite launches, such as those intoMolniya orbits, and historically served as a secondary launch facility. Most Soviet orbital launches were conducted fromBaikonur Cosmodrome, located in theKazakh SSR. However, following thedissolution of the Soviet Union, Baikonur became part ofKazakhstan, which began charging Russia to lease the land for its use. As a result, Plesetsk has seen significantly increased activity since the 2000s, especially for launchingmilitary satellites.
Plesetsk (62°55′32.32″N40°34′40.36″E / 62.9256444°N 40.5778778°E /62.9256444; 40.5778778) is used especially formilitary satellites placed into high inclination and polar orbits since the range for falling debris is clear to the north which is largely uninhabited Arctic and polar terrain. It is situated in a region oftaiga, or flat terrain with boreal pine forests.
TheSoyuz rocket,Cosmos-3M,Rokot,Tsyklon, andAngara[1] are launched from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome. The heavyProton andZenit rockets can only be land-launched fromBaikonur (Zenit may also be launched at sea). As of 26 December 2017, all Zenit launches are discontinued and all activities are suspended.
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Plesetsk Cosmodrome was originally developed by theSoviet Union as a launch site forintercontinental ballistic missiles under the leadership and supervision of lieutenant generalGalaktion Alpaidze. On 11 January 1957, theSoviet government passed the resolution about the foundation of a special military object with the secret name "Angara". This secret object had to be situated inPlesetsk District, Arkhangelsk Oblast. It was named after the town ofPlesetsk. The first Soviet Combat formation of intercontinental ballistic missilesR-7 of general designerSergei Korolev had to be located in that place, in thick northerntaiga to the south of Arkhangelsk. The official birthday of the proving ground was 15 July 1957. That day Colonel Gregorjev assumed his post as the missile unit commander. By 15 July 1961, four missile complexes for R-7 ICBMs were at combat status.
In January 1963, a joint decision of theCentral Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and theUSSR Council of Ministers created the "Research Proving Ground missile and space weapons USSR Ministry of Defense" near the Ilez railway station,Velsky District of Arkhangelsk Oblast. In the summer of 1963, the state leadership decided to use the Plesetsk launch facilities for launching spacecraft. In September 1963, the Council of Ministers of the USSR 3rd ALM and NIIP converted to "53 minutes Research Proving Ground". Three test management, employees of combat duty, tests of rocket and space complexes, holding and processing of telemetry and trajectory measurements.
And from 1964, on the basis of rocket connection started the establishment of research proving ground missiles and space weapons. Such conversion were the favourable geographical location and a significant number of systems already deployed by the end of 1964 were on duty, four launchers R-7A, seven PU P-16U, and three PU R-9A. Since then, the landfill has developed in two directions: rocket and space.
17 March 1966 was the space birthday of Plesetsk. That day was the first missile launching of the rocket boosterVostok with space vehicleKosmos 112. Since that time, the rocket base "Angara" has become Plesetsk Cosmodrome. Construction started in 1957 and it was declared operational forR-7 rockets in December 1959. The urban-type settlement ofPlesetsk in Arkhangelsk Oblast had a railway station, essential for the transport of missile components. A new town for the support of the facility was namedMirny, Russian for "peaceful". By 1997, more than 1,500 launches to space had been made from the site, more than from any other launch facility, although the usage has declined significantly since the break-up of the Soviet Union.
Because Plesetsk was used primarily for military launches, especiallyZenit photoreconnaissance satellites, which were launched in large numbers during the 1970s-80s, the USSR did not admit to its existence, but it was discovered by British physics teacherGeoffrey Perry and his students atKettering Grammar School, who carefully analysed the orbit of the Kosmos 112 satellite in 1966 and deduced it had not been launched fromBaikonur Cosmodrome.Meteor 1-2 satellite launch from Plesetsk on 6 October 1969 was one of the earliest launches observed and photographed fromFinland. After the end of theCold War, it was learned that theCIA had begun to suspect the existence of anICBM launch site at Plesetsk in the late 1950s. The Soviet Union did not officially admit the existence of Plesetsk Cosmodrome until 1983.
The use of the cosmodrome will likely increase in the future since there are concerns with security in operating theBaikonur Cosmodrome in now-independentKazakhstan, which demands rent for its continued use. Plesetsk is not ideally suited for low inclination or geostationary launches because of its high latitude of 62° north (as compared to theCentre Spatial Guyanais at 5° north or theKennedy Space Center at 28° 31' north). In addition, the high latitude means that lift capacity for boosters launched from Plesetsk is slightly lower than Baikonur launches. By the 2000s, Russia had completely phased out military launches from Baikonur. With some exceptions if for example the Proton M launcher is needed
The new all-RussianAngara rocket was designed to be launched primarily from Plesetsk (and also eventually from theVostochny Cosmodrome).[1]
In May 2007, a new ICBM, called theRS-24 has been tested and launched there, and is seen as eventually replacing the aging RS-18/UR-100Ns (SS-19 Stiletto) and RS-20/R-36Ms (SS-18 Satan) that are the backbone of Russia's missile forces.[2]
In September 2011,Space Forces spokesman Colonel Alexei Zolotukhin said Russia will spend over 5 billion rubles (US$170 million) on the development and expansion of the cosmodrome in 2011. This includes the reconstruction of a local motorway and modernising the energy supply system. New facilities will be built, including a dormitory and hospital.[3]
PL-19 Nudol anti-ballistic missile systems are located at the Cosmodrome, at the former launch site of theTsyklon-2 rocket.[citation needed]
Site 16, also known asSK-2, is alaunch complex at the Cosmodrome. It consists of a single pad,Site 16/2, and has been used byR-7 derived rockets since 1960. It has launched a total of 136 rockets across its lifespan.
Site 16 was originally built for use byR-7A Semyorka missiles, however no launches were conducted from the complex whilst it was operational. After its retirement from service in 1966, it was cannibalised for parts which were needed to repairSite 31/6 at theBaikonur Cosmodrome following the explosion of aSoyuz-U rocket.
Work to rebuild the complex began in 1979, and was completed in 1981.[4] The first launch from Site 16 was conducted by aMolniya-M with anOko satellite on 19 February 1981.
Site 16 was used for Soyuz-U and Molniya-M launches. It remained in use until 17 May 2012 when it saw its final launch,Kosmos 2480, a reconnaissance satellite on a Soyuz-U rocket.
Site 32 at the Cosmodrome is alaunch complex[5] formerly used byTsyklon-3carrier rockets. It consists of a two launch pads, Site 32/1 and Site 32/2, which were used between 1977 and 2009. It has theGRAU index11P868.[6]
In 1970, the building of a highly automated launch complex for Tsyklon-3 booster began at Site 32, which was designed byOmsk Transmash Design Bureau led by Chief DesignerVladimir Nikolayevich Chelomey.[5] The first launch from Site 32 was conducted from pad 2 on 24 June 1977, with the first from Site 32/1 following on 23 January 1980. The last launch from Site 32/1 occurred on 28 December 2001. Site 32/2 was retired on 30 January 2009, along with the Tsyklon-3. All 122 Tsyklon-3 launches were conducted from the site. 57 launches were recorded as having been from pad 1 and 65 were recorded from pad 2.
Site 35 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome is a launch complex used byRussia'sAngara rocket. The complex has a singlelaunch pad, Site 35/1, which was first used for themaiden flight of the Angara in July 2014.
Site 35 was originally intended to support theZenit rocket, which theSoviet Union saw as a replacement for theR-7 series. The construction of a Zenit launch complex at Plesetsk was authorised in 1976; however, development did not begin until the completion ofSite 45 at theBaikonur Cosmodrome, which was also constructed for Zenit. Construction at Site 35 began in the mid-1980s, but the programme was abandoned following thedissolution of the Soviet Union.[7]
Following the cancellation of Zenit launches from Plesetsk, Russia had originally planned to use parts constructed for Site 35 to repair one of the Zenit pads at Baikonur that had been heavily damaged when a rocket lost thrust and fell back into the flame trench seconds after launch. Instead, the parts were eventually used onSea Launch'sOdyssey launch platform.[8]
When Russia began development of the Angara rocket, launch pads at both Plesetsk and Baikonur were planned. Several existing sites at Plesetsk were considered, includingSite 41/1,Site 16/2, andSite 32; Site 35/1 was determined to be the most suitable. Construction began in 2004 but was not completed until April 2014.[8]
The Angara made its maiden flight—in the one-offAngara-1.2pp configuration—from Site 35/1 on 9 July 2014, flying a successful suborbital test mission.[7] The first orbital launch from the site was the inaugural launch of the Angara A5 on 23 December 2014, which carried a mass simulator.[9] A second orbital test flight of the Angara A5 took place almost six years later, on 14 December 2020.[10]
Site 41, also known asLesobaza andSK-1, was alaunch complex at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome inRussia. It consisted of a single pad, Site 41/1, and was used byR-7 derived rockets between 1959 and 1989.
Site 41 was originally built for use byR-7A Semyorka missiles. During theCuban Missile Crisis, an armed missile was placed on Site 41. It would have had a response time of 8–12 hours should an order have been given to launch it.[4] No launches were conducted from Site 41 whilst it was operational.
In 1963, the complex was converted for use bycarrier rockets. The first launch from the complex was asuborbital test of an R-7A Semyorka missile, on 14 December 1965. The first orbital launch from the complex occurred on 17 March 1966, when aVostok-2 rocket launchedKosmos 112. In total, 308 orbital and two suborbital launches were conducted from the complex, using R-7A, Vostok-2,Vostok-2M,Voskhod andSoyuz-U rockets. The last launch to use the complex was of a Soyuz-U withBion 9 on 15 September 1989.[4][11] Since this launch, the pad has been disassembled.
Site 43, also known asSK-3 andSK-4, is alaunch complex at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome inRussia. It consists of a two pads, Sites 43/3 and 43/4, and has been used byR-7 derived rockets since the early 1960s.
The site was originally built for use byR-7A Semyorka missiles. The first launch to use the complex was an R-7A test on 21 December 1965, from Site 43/3. The first launch from 43/4 followed on 25 July 1967.
After its retirement from service as a missile base, it was converted for use as a space launch complex. The first orbital launch was of aVoskhod rocket withKosmos 313 on 3 December 1969.
Both pads were damaged by explosions in the 1980s. At 16:01 UTC on 18 March 1980, 48 peoplewere killed when aVostok-2M exploded during fueling operations at Pad 4. The disaster injured dozens more, while damaging the pad so severely that it was not used again until 1984. On 18 June 1987, aSoyuz-U rocket exploded at liftoff on Pad 3.[12] Both were rebuilt, and are in service as of 2009.
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