Vladimir Putin faced humiliation today after his “unstoppable” Satan-2 missile exploded, destroying Russia’s only test site for the hypersonic weapon.
Satellite images show the destruction left by the explosion at the Plesetsk test site in northern Russia, which partially destroyed an observation building near the launch site, indicating there may be casualties among rocket scientists.
A giant 200-foot-wide crater and scorched earth can be seen at the Satan-2 launch pit site.
Experts say the test programme for the rocket, also known as RS-28 Sarmat, could be delayed for years or even aborted after a series of failed launches.
The monstrous “unstoppable” hypersonic missile is designed to attack the West by flying over the North or South Poles, making it impossible for air defenses to shoot it down.
BEFORE: This is what the Plesetsk test site in northern Russia looked like before the explosion
AFTERMATH: Satellite images show the destruction left behind by the blast, which partially destroyed an observation building near the launch site, indicating there may be casualties among rocket scientists.
Vladimir Putin faced humiliation today after his “unstoppable” Satan-2 missile exploded, destroying Russia’s only test site for the hypersonic weapon.
Putin has boasted that the 208-tonne doomsday nuclear weapon, launched from an intercontinental silo at 25,500km/h and the size of a 14-storey block of flats, is “unstoppable” by the West.
A test flight over the South Pole was expected, according to Russian state news agency TASS last year.
Putin has boasted that the 208-tonne doomsday nuclear weapon, launched from an intercontinental silo at a speed of 25,500 kilometres per hour (the size of a 14-storey block of flats), is “unstoppable” by the West. Satan-2 carries ten nuclear warheads of 750 kilotons each.
The fires continued for six to 12 hours after the catastrophic incident, according to NASA FIRMS, and several fire trucks were seen at the bombed site.
Russian state media controlled by Putin have been censored and are unable to report on the explosion in Plesetsk or the reasons that led to it.
OSINT analyst MeNMyRC said evidence indicated the missile test had been aborted before the explosion.
The fire may have been triggered by a lack of fuel from the rocket’s highly hazardous fuel, UDMH, which produces flammable vapours in the air.
One theory is that a propellant leak in the silo caused the catastrophic event after the launch was aborted for other reasons.
“This silo explosion could very well indicate that the test had already failed/been postponed and that the accident occurred during missile fuel offloading or associated operations,” MeNMyRC said.
Norwegian OSINT analyst Thord Are Iversen said: ‘This was the only silo in Plesetsk to test Sarmat and now it has to be rebuilt from scratch again.
‘The Uzhur silos will be available soon, but it remains to be seen whether they will be able or willing to use them for testing.’
The destroyed silo is the one used for the only successful test launch of Satan-2 to date, in April 2022.
Russia had issued and subsequently revoked a NOTAM (Notice to Airmen or Notice to Air Missions) evidently related to the missile test.
“The destruction of this base will undoubtedly have major consequences for the flight test programme, which already appears to be suffering from significant delays,” said French strategic systems and technologies analyst Etienne Marcuz.
Rebuilding the silo would take “at least several months, if not years.”
A giant 200-foot-wide crater and scorched earth can be seen at the Satan-2 launch pit site.
The Satan-2 missile (pictured above) carries ten nuclear warheads of 750 kilotons each.
The green foliage of summer has been vaporized as a crater was formed by the massive explosion at the test site.
Putin may be forced to cancel the program altogether due to repeated failures.
‘The latter option is unlikely, as Sarmat is one of the future cornerstones of Russian deterrence.
‘However, the programme will need a thorough overhaul to make it reliable, which could take years, especially as Western sanctions appear to be severely affecting the sector.
That said, this failure seriously undermines the Russian narrative about strategic ‘superweapons’ aimed at terrorising the West.
Putin insisted on putting the missile into mass production and then deploying it with troops earlier this year, despite only one successful test. However, it is far from clear that it is safe to use.
The Sarmat-Satan-2 complex will replace the Voevoda (or Satan) missile, which has been in service since the 1980s.
Russian reports say Sarmat has been hit during the war in Ukraine by Western sanctions that have prevented its manufacturers from obtaining key components.
Putin’s propagandists periodically threaten to attack the West with “Satan-2.”
Putin himself stated in April 2022: “This truly unique weapon will strengthen the combat potential of our armed forces, reliably ensure Russia’s security from external threats and make those who try to threaten our country with aggressive rhetoric think twice.”
Two months later he boasted: ‘We have successfully tested the Sarmat heavy intercontinental ballistic missile.
‘It is the most powerful missile with the longest target destruction range in the world.
“This truly unique weapon will significantly strengthen the combat potential of our armed forces.”
Another of Putin’s superweapons, the Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile, also suffered a catastrophic event during a test in 2019 and is still not operational.
The blast at the test site comes after a Ukrainian kamikaze drone strike reportedly hit a Satan-2 nuclear missile, triggering an apocalyptic explosion over the weekend.
Apocalyptic explosions ripped through two huge Russian missile and ammunition depots over the weekend
A secret ammunition silo in Toropets in the Tver region housing one of the Russian president’s nuclear missiles was attacked by a Ukrainian drone, it was claimed on Saturday.
It reportedly occurred just ten miles from an “indestructible” 30,000-tonne ammunition storage site that had been destroyed last Wednesday.
The claim that the missile was destroyed came from a Russian Telegram channel and a news blackout intensified the rumour.
Another site, believed to house North Korean missiles supplied to Putin by Kim Jong Un, was also said to have been attacked.
Mushroom clouds and flaming shells lit up the night sky over a facility in the Russian city of Tikhoretsk in the Krasnodar region in a devastating, pinpoint attack by Ukrainian kamikaze drones.