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An unannounced launch from Plesetsk delivers payload into low orbit On the evening of March 23, 2026, multiple witnesses in and around town of Ukhta, northeast of the Plesetsk launch site, observed and documented a typical rocket vehicle ascending through the upper atmosphere, however neither Roskosmos nor the Ministry of Defense issued a routine announcement through the official state media in the aftermath of the event, as it would normally be done with a few exceptions since the beginning of the Space Era.
Orbital launch on March 23, 2026, at a glance:
One of the first confirmations that the observed mission reached orbit came from the r4uab.ru web site, which announced that the OBZP1 micro-satellite, (known by Russian abbreviation MKA for Maliy Kosmicheskiy Apparat), established contact with the network of the Efir amateur radio stations, following its launch from Plesetsk on March 23, 2026. The message also referenced a 290 by 324-kilometer orbit with an inclination of 82.3 degrees toward the Equator, which matched the observations on the ground for a flight path previously used by Soyuz and Rockot vehicles launching from Plesetsk. It was also consistent with a flight and sea-faring restriction notices issued by the Russian government in recent days and believed to be associated with the plaanned launch of the first batch of Rassvet satellites (INSIDER CONTENT) for the low-orbital Internet network developed at Moscow-based Buro 1440. (INSIDER CONTENT) 
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