A Soyuz 2.1b rocket launched from Site 1S at Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia, carrying two Ionosfera-M satellites into a Sun-synchronous orbit. Launch took place on Friday, July 25, at 05:54 UTC and saw Soyuz fly on a northern trajectory over vast but sparsely populated territory.
The Ionosfera-M no. 3 and no. 4 satellites are flying to a circular orbit around 800 km altitude on a Fregat-M upper stage to complete the four-satellite Ionosfera science satellite constellation. The Ionosfera-M no. 1 and no. 2 satellites were launched in November 2024 aboard a similar Soyuz/Fregat launch vehicle from Vostochny.