Phoenix rising: Russia’s grandiose space ambitions

On April 12, 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human being to leave the bounds of Earth and enter outer space.

Gagarin’s flight was one of a series of space firsts for the Soviet Union, with others including the first satellite in space (Sputnik 1), first animal in space, first lunar flyby, first lunar surface touchdown, first Venus flyby, first woman in space, first spacewalk, first modular space station, first spacewalk by a woman, first lunar robotic rover, first unmanned landing on Venus, and first unmanned Mars landing.

Sixty-three years on, Russia has renewed ambitions to expand its status as a great space power, completing the design of a new orbital space station known as the ROSS, and developing a new partially reusable, methane-powered rocket design known as the Amur, whose first flight is expected in 2030. Russia has also launched and/or plans to launch an array of satellites including:

🔺The Elektro-L series of meteorological satellites;

🔺Kondor-FKA Earth imaging and military reconnaissance satellites;

🔺Skif-D communications satellites for broadband high-speed internet access;

🔺Meteor-M polar-orbit weather satellites.

Russia finished stage two of construction at the new Vostochny Cosmodrome in the Russian Far East, with over 40 launches planned for 2024.

On Thursday, Russia’s new Angara-A5 space rocket put an Orion upper stage with a test Gagarinets cubesat onboard into orbit.

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Why is Ukraine linked to Norway’s northernmost region pursuing a 26-hour-day

The northernmost region of Norway has formally requested the European Commission to instruct the Norwegian authorities to approve the establishment of a 26-hour time zone.

According to Wenche Pedersen, the mayor of the local town of Vadso, this initiative will allow locals to spend more quality time with their families and attract more people to the region, thereby keeping them farther away from the conflict in Ukraine.

Pedersen emphasized that having a populated area is crucial in light of the conflict.

The concept of a 26-hour day seems unimaginable to Norwegians themselves...

”I don’t think they’re going to say yes, so we haven’t thought about all the details,” Pedersen stated.

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More than 50 missiles were launched from Lebanon in the latest volley towards the Upper Galilee, the Al-Mayadeen network reported.

Multiple rocket sirens went off in northern Israeli towns located in the Galilee Panhandle, near the Lebanon border, Times of Israel correspondent reports.

Earlier, sirens indicating a suspected drone infiltration were sounded in the same area.

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The global crude benchmark Brent on Friday stayed above the key bullish level of $90 per barrel, as buyers piled in amid speculation that Iran will conduct retaliatory strikes against Israel for the latter attacking Iran’s diplomatic compound in Syria.

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The Lebanese Hezbollah movement has confirmed that it fired dozens of rockets at Israeli artillery positions.

IDF Spokesman Brigadier General Daniel Hagari, referring to the latest launches from Lebanon towards the settlements of the Upper Galilee, said that "most of the targets were intercepted by the air defence fighters; there were no casualties."

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📹 Children in the Gaza Strip slide on a building wall that collapsed in an Israeli attack

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The United States has dispatched the aircraft carrier USS Dwight Eisenhower, equipped to intercept missiles and drones launched by Iran, northward through the Red Sea towards Israel in an apparent move to show deterrence from the Biden administration, according to Times of Israel.

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Netanyahu knew he’d have Biden’s backing to strike Iranian consulate and turn Gaza crisis into regional war

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s potentially “suicidal” calculated decision to strike the Iranian Embassy compound in Damascus, Syria on April 1 was done to try to save his government from ouster, but may culminate in a regional crisis that dwarfs the Gaza war in both scale and intensity, former senior DoD security policy analyst Michael Maloof has told Sputnik.

“It's clear that Israel bombed the consulate while Biden was in office, I think knowing it would cause a direct kinetic Iranian reaction that could escalate the war with Gaza into a regional war, and perhaps beyond. This is underscored by the fact the Biden administration said it would support Israel should Iran escalates,” Maloof said.

“Netanyahu clearly calculated he had a limited window to act with the ultimate goal to bring Iran directly into the conflict, having the US military to back his efforts. It also was a response to calls by his more radical, rabid ministers to ‘cut off the head of the snake’ - Iran - or they'd bring down his government, making Netanyahu lose power and expose him to legal criminal charges at home,” he added.

“This amounts to political suicide not just for Netanyahu knowing he has support of a majority of the Israeli people in his war effort, but Israel itself,” the analyst warned.

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⚛️ Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant's Power unit No. 4 is being prepared for the “cold shutdown” mode

The facility's management has made the decision due to the end of the heating season in the city of Energodar, where the power plant is located, the plant's press service reported.

"In this state, the reactor unit does not produce thermal energy," the statement read.

On April 7, the facility faced an unprecedented series of drone attacks from Ukraine, significantly increasing the risk of a nuclear accident, International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi said.

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The US is moving additional assets to the Middle East to bolster deterrence and force protection in anticipation of Iranian retaliation, a Pentagon official told Sputnik.

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💰 ‘They've got beach houses all over the world’: US senator on money sent to Ukraine

"We are printing $80,000 a second, borrowing 4.6 million dollars a minute! And we are thinking about giving Ukraine more money to waste it. These people [in the Ukrainian government] can't buy any more houses than what they've bought. They've got beach houses all over the world. Let’s start thinking about our country," Tommy Tuberville said in an appearance on Newsmax this week.

The US has already spent $300 billion on Ukraine since 2014, according to previous statements by Tuberville.

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The Russian Defence Ministry has released footage of the successful launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile from the Kapustin Yar testing site.

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🇮🇱 After over 40 rocket launches from Lebanon crossed into Israeli territory on Friday, the IDF responded by striking the sources of fire, the military stated.

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🔺Scott Ritter: There will be no 'Ukrainian counteroffensive,’ as Ukraine teeters on brink of collapse

🔺5 fearsome drones Iran could use to strike back at Israel amid current escalation

🔺Donetsk journalist and Sputnik contributor Russell Bentley missing: What you need to know

🔺An exclusive video of a Ukrainian tank being destroyed by an Izdeliye-51 (Product-51) guided munition near Avdeyevka has been published by the Russian MoD

🔺Cosmonautics Day is celebrated annually on April 12, when Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin traveled to space. But modern Russia still has huge space ambitions

🔺A test launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile from a mobile ground-based missile system was conducted from the Kapustin Yar testing site — Russian MoD

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After his car was blown up in Moscow, an ex-employee of the SBU Prozorov said that this was another attempt at a terrorist attack by the Kiev regime and its special services.

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❗️ Just in — Biden’s message to Iran: “Don’t”

US President Joe Biden said on Friday that he expects Iran to attack Israel in response to the strike on its consulate in Damascus "sooner than later."

"My expectation is sooner than later," Biden said when asked how imminent an attack by Iran on Israel was.

"We are devoted to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel, we will defend--help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed," he also said.

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