Russia has been developing a new space station called the Russian Orbital Service Station, which is set to replace the International Space Station (ISS). The new orbital station will consist of several modules. The first is scheduled for launch in December 2027 from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia’s Far East, using the Angara-A5M heavy-lift rocket.
Furthermore, the station is also anticipated to host space tourists, according to Dmitry Bakanov, head of Roscosmos, the Russian space agency.
Vostochny is Russia’s first civilian spaceport, built in 2016 to reduce dependence on the Baikonur Cosmodrome — a launch complex in Kazakhstan operated under a Russian lease.
In 2024, Roscosmos reported that most of its launches were still taking place from the Kazakh facility. This year, for example, there were six launches by Russia: two from Baikonur and four from Plesetsk, a launch complex operated by the Russian military.
In addition, last December, Russia and Kazakhstan negotiated the launch of up to 10 Proton-M rockets from Baikonur. These rockets were supposed to be phased out by 2025 due to their toxic fuel — heptyl — that bears significant risks for the environment and health of people living near the cosmodrome. According to the Roscosmos website, the most recent Proton-M launches occurred in 2023.
Kazakhstan, meanwhile, has its own space ambitions. In late May, Senator Andrei Lukin proposed that the country move beyond being merely a lessor of the Baikonur Cosmodrome and develop its own small-lift launch vehicle, making full use of its infrastructure and potential.
From 2001 to 2021, Russian spacecraft launched nine space tourists to the ISS from Baikonur aboard Soyuz rockets — before the American Crew Dragon gained priority for such missions.
