Space forces launched military satellites from Plesetsk

The massive Soyuz-2 rocket lifted off to the skies above Arctic Russia early morning on Friday, the Defense Ministry informed to newspaper Izvestia.

In a northeast direction, the rocket placed military satellites into orbit.

According to the monitoring Russian Space Web, Friday’s payload was likely the eight Lotos mission and included satellites performing electronic intelligence from space for the defense forces.

The launch is the fourth in the course of the last 12 months.

Plesetsk is the main Cosmodrome in Russia and is located some 200 kilometers south of Arkhangelsk. In addition to satellite launches, the cosmodrome is also key in testing Russia’s land-based ballistic nuclear missiles.