Russian GLONASS launch from Plesetsk ought to have been spectacular

Russia just launched a GLONASS navsat from the northern cosmodrome at Plesetsk.

www.spaceflightnow.com...

It was a midnight launch but we're very close to summer solstice ['midnight sun' in northern latitudes] so the eastward path of the rocket should have been backlit along its entire trajectory across northern Siberia, and ought to have been visible up to 2000 km or more to the south. Expect MANY Russian videos of the event, often by drunks partying all night so the 'mat' language will be especially salty.

Some may even swear it was a UFO.

Keep an eye on youtube in coming hours.

a reply to: JimOberg

Let's hope they lift their game. I find the GLONASS system very troublesome from time to time and often turn off the reception thereof.

Not really sure why it takes so long to download the ephemeris files from the GLONASS transmissions, but it is really annoying.

Kind Regards
Myselfaswell

a reply to: myselfaswell

GLONASS NAV messsage includes all information needed to compute the satellite position from the origin up. The GPS NAV message gives you a starting point in XYZ ECEF coordinates and gives you information to solve the movement from that point.

GPS is more accurate but the accuracy decays more quickly. If there is ever a system outage, with no control segment updates, GLONASS should be usable for autonomous positioning, longer. GLONASS has 5x more data, taking 2.5 min @ 50bps.

Events are proceeding as I have foreseen.

UFO over Omsk
omskpress.ru...

video link
www.youtube.com...

Second story
gorod55.ru...

Here are comments I translated from the first video:

юрий чирков
1 day ago

14.06.14 видел такое же только в центре было красное пятно, и двигалось с быстрой скоростью
14.06.14 I SAW THE SAME. ONLY IN THE CENTER WAS A RED SPOT, AND IT MOVED AT A FAST RATE




Макс Заславский
13 hours ago

Видел тоже самое над Матвеевкой, г. Новосибирск. Примерно в 00:30 двигалось параллельно земле и без шума.
I SAW THE SAME THING OVER MATVEYEVKA, NOVOSIBIRSK. AROUND 00:30 IT MOVED PARALLEL TO THE GROUND AND WITHOUT NOISE.



Artem Borovik
20 hours ago

Видел такой над Чистоозёрным. 15.06.14г примерно в 00.25 двигалась вдоль ЖД, со стороны г. Татарска в сторону г. Купино.
I SAW THIS AT CHISTO’OZERNOYE. 15.06.2014 APPROXIMATELY 00.25 MOVING ALONG THE RAILWAY, FROM THE DIRECTION OF TATARSK TOWARDS KUPINO.


smcduck bucks
20 hours ago

В живую эта штука смотрелась очень впечатляюще,очень быстро пронеслась через всю видимую часть неба,жаль что было немного облачно.

INTO LIFE THIS THING LOOKED VERY IMPRESSIVE, VERY QUICKLY IT SWEPT ACROSS THE ENTIRE VISIBLE PART OF THE SKY, A PITY IT WAS A BIT CLOUDY.

Here's an old news story I just found that offers some context to last night's UFO in Omsk.

english.pravda.ru...

WOW!! Launch was also accidentally observed from International Space Station!

European astronaut Alexander Gerst spots, photographs Russian rocket launch. On March 18 in Houston, I had met with Gerst and briefed him on the ISS observation last October 10 of the Topol launch. So he was primed to take quick advantage of the opportunity when he spotted this rocket.

www.spaceflight101.com...