Baikonur Launchpad Damaged After Latest Soyuz Launch

The launchpad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome was seriously damaged on Nov. 27 after the latest launch of the Soyuz MS-28, carrying three astronauts to the International Space Station. While the launch was successful, the damage to the pad will prevent its use in launching Soyuz or Progress capsules to the ISS. While this has been officially confirmed by NASA, it has not attracted much notice in the Russian press. There are no other options available for ISS launches from Russian or Kazakh soil. It is not clear how long it will take to repair the facility.