Russia begins construction of Angara launchpad at Vostochny
Russia has begun the construction of the first Angara launchpad at their new Vostochny spaceport.
According to earlier reports, the Angara launch pad is to be completed by December 31, 2022. Construction costs are estimated at nearly 39 billion rubles ($565 million).
Somehow it seems to me that this construction is too expensive and is taking too long. A launchpad is essentially a specialized building on the surface. I don’t see why it should be so difficult or expensive to do.
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Russia has begun the construction of the first Angara launchpad at their new Vostochny spaceport.
According to earlier reports, the Angara launch pad is to be completed by December 31, 2022. Construction costs are estimated at nearly 39 billion rubles ($565 million).
Somehow it seems to me that this construction is too expensive and is taking too long. A launchpad is essentially a specialized building on the surface. I don’t see why it should be so difficult or expensive to do.
Readers!
Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black. Your support allows me the freedom and ability to analyze objectively the ongoing renaissance in space, as well as the cultural changes -- for good or ill -- that are happening across America. Fourteen years ago I wrote that SLS and Orion were a bad ideas, a waste of money, would be years behind schedule, and better replaced by commercial private enterprise. Only now does it appear that Washington might finally recognize this reality.
In 2020 when the world panicked over COVID I wrote that the panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Only in the past year have some of our so-called experts in the health field have begun to recognize these facts.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:
4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.
For Angara it might be more complex than the average launch pad, since it is modular. To be launched with 1 or 5 common cores, and on the drawing board there are 3 and 7 cores too although those have been postponed AFAIK. I suppose Angara 5 requires a launch tower that reaches around the rocket to fuel all the cores. Still that’s alot of money, considering Russian prices. They do not import much in the way of military and space stuff, so they have their own price level there quite isolated from the rest of the world.
SpaceX still doesn’t have their Texas site operational.
1st. We don’t know for sure, what it’s going to be designed to launch or the size of the craft. We assume it’s the same as we already know…but we could be wrong. They have already surprised people with developments lately..why not again. 2nd. there must be some reason trump is trying to organize a space force…a new arms race/ space race?
Paul cross,
The reason that Trump is working on a Space Force is the same reason that Congress has been discussing the same action for a few years. It has become increasingly clear that our military assets in space are not as safe as we wish them to be. Vulnerabilities have become known, such as the 2007 Chinese anti-satellite missile test and various laser attacks (e.g. trying to blind satellite cameras).
The main purpose for the proposed Space Force is to protect our space assets, largely by changing the way we design and operate them.
One concern is that we currently have small numbers of large, expensive satellites that are easy targets and difficult to replace quickly. A proposed solution is to replace their functions with constellations of small satellites whose function are difficult to diminish without disabling a large number of satellites yet are easy to replace quickly should some, most, or all of them be disabled by enemy action. Such constellations can make an attack on the space assets not worthwhile.
The thought is that a single military organization that manages our space assets can do a better job of protection than the current more distributed system.
In answer to your question (please note that the reporter, not Pence, calls it an arms race):
https://spacenews.com/vice-president-pence-announces-first-steps-towards-creating-a-new-military-branch-for-space/