Russia has launched 16 low-orbit satellites as Moscow seeks to build a rival to Elon Musk’s Starlink broadband network. Russia remains well behind Starlink, which since its first launch of operational satellites in 2019 has grown to more than 10,000 active satellites in orbit. Bureau 1440, the Russian aerospace firm ⁠developing a low-Earth-orbit satellite system […]

Eutelsat has ended contracts it had in place on two Russian-owned satellites. Russia’s Express AT1 and AT2 satellites had contracted leases for capacity on these satellites to complement coverage provided by the Eutelsat 36C and 36D satellites located at 36° East. Eutelsat says AT1 has failed at its 56 degrees East position, and AT2 is […]

Russian space vehicles, not for the first time, have approached European satellites and intercepted their communications, officials believe. The risks to Europe’s military and government communications are serious. Recently two satellites have passed dangerously close to some of Europe’s most important geostationary satellites, the FT reported, and lingered nearby for weeks and potentially collecting data […]

Russia’s rival to SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, its Amur vehicle with its recoverable first-stage, is reportedly now unlikely to make its debut flights much before 2030. One comment from Eric Berger, an acknowledged industry expert, suggested that the project, initially announced in a 2020 proposal, is now comically late. Berger said: “This indicates that Russia’s […]

Russian aerospace business Bureau 1440 has admitted it has postponed its initial deployment of 16 high-speed internet satellites. Originally scheduled for late 2025, the launch of the first batch for the Rassvet (‘Dawn’) Low Earth Orbit (LEO) constellation has now been rescheduled for 2026. The delay is attributed to production failures and incomplete assembly of […]

Russia’s Roscosmos space agency has repeated its promise to launch around 300 broadband satellites by 2027, and that local manufacturers will supply 200,000 user terminals this year. However, observers say that with Russia’s aging Soyuz rockets are only able to carry about 15 satellites per rocket launch, consequently it would take 20 launches to carry […]

Reflecting on 2025, NetScout states that global tensions and geopolitical conflicts shaped many of the year’s headlines, with the combats between Israel–Hamas and Russia–Ukraine taking centre stage. These events not only took place in the physical world, but also extended into the digital realm, creating unprecedented risks for organisations globally. According to NetScout’s latest Threat […]

Reports from the Russian Space Web (RSW) say that heads continue to roll at Russia’s Roskosmos. The site says that the Director General at ISS Reshetnev, prime developer of military and communications satellites, is “voluntarily resigning”. On October 10th, Roskosmos announced that Evgeny Nesterov, the head of ISS Reshetnev, Russia’s prime developer of military and […]

Pierre Lionnet, Research & Managing Director at ESD Eurospace, says that Russia is planning to launch 900 satellites into low Earth orbit and to rival Elon Musk’s Starlink. The system, called Rassvet (or perhaps Rassviett) already has six craft in orbit. Lionnet says the satellites are built by a newcomer in the sector, Byuro 1440 […]