Russia launches rocket from newly built Vostochny Cosmodrome

Russia launched a rocket from the newly built Vostochny Cosmodrome in the Far Eastern Amur region in the early hours of Thursday, TASS news agency reported.

The Soyuz-2.1a rocket blasted off at 5:01 a.m. Moscow time (0201 GMT), one day after the first launch attempt was aborted due to the failure of the rocket's automatic control system.

The three small satellites -- Lomonosov, Aist-2D and SamSat-218 -- carried by the rocket have reached their designated orbits, said Russia's space agency Roscosmos.

Russian President Vladimir Putin flew from Moscow to witness the liftoff of the rocket.

He congratulated Roscosmos on the successful launch, describing it as a significant step in the development of the Russian space industry.

The construction of the Vostochny Cosmodrome with an area of some 700 square km began in 2012. It is projected to be the first national facility for civilian space launches, ensuring Russia's full-scale access to outer space and reducing Russia's dependence on the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan.

The Vostochny Cosmodrome could be used for Russia's Lunar program in the future, Kremlin Chief of Staff Sergei Ivanov told the media on Thursday.

"It is a bit too early to talk about the Lunar 1, because that requires appropriate space technology, but in the future I think yes," Ivanov said.

The Baikonur space center is on lease to Russia until 2050, while Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin said his country would continue to use Baikonur to launch manned missions until 2023.

(APD)