Russia’s space agency says a launch pad at Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan was damaged during the lift-off of a Soyuz spacecraft that ferried three people to the International Space Station on Thursday.
The agency, Roscosmos, said the launch pad will soon be repaired. But some analysts say the incident could lead to launch delays at Baikonur, which Russia periodically uses to send its cosmonauts as well as American astronauts to the space station.
In the latest mission from Baikonur, the Soyuz MS-28 craft safely delivered Russian cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergey Mikayev, as well as Christopher Williams of NASA, to the station.
“The space launch vehicle took off normally, without any issues. The spacecraft successfully docked with the International Space Station. The crew is on board and feeling well,” Roscosmos said on Telegram.
“An inspection of the launch site was conducted, as is done every time after a rocket launch. Damage to several elements of the launch pad was identified,” the agency said. It added: “All necessary spare parts are available for restoration, and the damage will be repaired in the near future.”
Quoting unidentified Russian sources, space writer Anatoly Zak said that a mobile service platform had collapsed into a flame duct below the launch pad, making the only facility for Russian orbital crew launches unusable for now. He said it was unclear whether a makeshift solution could be found to offset any delay in cargo and crew launches. A cargo flight had been scheduled for December.
Crewed flights have long traveled from the United States to the International Space Station. But any significant disruption to Russia’s launch capabilities would be a setback for the station, which is scheduled to be decommissioned around 2030.
