By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
MOSCOW/BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Experts said Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin suffered an embarrassing setback as his feared ‘Satan 2’ weapon failed four out of five missile tests.
Satellite images reviewed by Worthy News appeared to show extensive damage at the launch pad of Russia’s Plesetsk test site, where the nuclear-capable RS-28 Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile exploded.
A crater that experts said was about 60 meters (196 feet) wide at the launch silo at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northern Russia, along with visible destruction nearby, was not seen in images taken earlier in the month.
It suggested that the explosion in the silo created a vast crater and destroyed the test site.
U.S. space technology company “Maxar collected new high-resolution satellite imagery yesterday (September 21st) that reveals the aftermath of a dramatic launch failure of a Russian RS-28 ICBM, said George Barros, an analyst at the Institute for the Study of War.
“A large crater…is visible at the launch silo and extensive damage in and around the launchpad can be seen, which suggests that the missile exploded shortly after ignition or launch,” Barros, who shared the photos, wrote on social media platform X.
LAUNCH FAILURE
“We must not understate the importance of this launch failure vis-à-vis the information war. … This is a failure for a strategic Russian weapon system, but it is also an informational victory for Ukraine.”
Experts said that because the RS-28 Sarmat uses liquid fuel, the explosion could have occurred without the rocket’s launch.
This was reportedly the fourth unsuccessful attempt to test this new heavy intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying nuclear warheads.
The only successful test of the Sarmat missile took place on April 20, 2022.
Moscow did not immediately acknowledge the missile test or confirm that it failed. However, it comes as Russia’s military has already suffered setbacks elsewhere.
Thousands of Ukrainian troops have entered Russia’s Kursk region in recent weeks in what Kyiv views as a response to Russian aggression.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
Latest News from Worthy News
Israeli President Isaac Herzog has met victims’ families and survivors of Australia’s worst-ever terrorist and antisemitic attack that killed more than a dozen people, amid mounting tensions between the two nations.
Efforts to dismantle Hamas’ military infrastructure in Gaza are moving forward according to plan, despite tensions surrounding the ceasefire, a senior official involved in U.S. President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace initiative told Ynet in an exclusive report Wednesday.
As diplomatic talks continue between Washington and Tehran, new reports from inside Iran describe intensifying repression and widespread fear among ordinary citizens.
U.S. President Donald Trump met privately with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House for nearly three hours Wednesday, with both leaders confirming that negotiations with Iran remain ongoing but no final agreement has been reached.
The Pentagon has instructed a second aircraft carrier strike group to prepare for potential deployment to the Middle East as the United States increases military readiness in response to rising tensions with Iran, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Authorities in the U.S. state of Arizona detained a suspect Tuesday in connection with the reported abduction of Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of American television host Savannah Guthrie, as the high-profile investigation entered its ninth day.
Nine people were killed Tuesday in a mass shooting in the western Canadian province of British Columbia, and at least 27 others were injured, authorities confirmed late Tuesday, marking one of the deadliest attacks in Canada in recent years.