This is a graphic depicting the MiG-31 satellite launch concept. Public Domain
Warzone/The Drive: Exclusive: Russian MiG-31 Foxhound Carrying Huge Mystery Missile Emerges Near Moscow
The big rocket is likely to be either a space-launch system or an anti-satellite weapon, and maybe even both.
Russia's recent adaptation of their Iskander tactical ballistic missile into an air-launched weapon made major headlines and was among the least technologically reaching of Putin's new cadre of superweapons that are supposedly in development. The carrier aircraft for that weapon, named 'Kinzhal,' is MiG-31 Foxhound interceptor. The MiG-31, which evolved out of the MiG-25 Foxbat, has the ability to carry heavy loads to high altitudes and at very speeds approaching mach three. This makes it an ideal launch platform not just for ballistic missiles meant to strike targets on the surface of the earth, but also for small suborbital or even orbital payloads, and especially direct-ascent anti-satellite weapons. On September 14th, 2018 what appears to be just such a launch system was photographed at Zhukovsky Airport outside of Moscow by aviation photographer ShipSash.
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WNU Editor: Having an anti-satellite arsenal has always been a priority for the Russian military. I would not be surprised if this new missile serves this purpose.
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