Russia has launched a Soyuz-2-1v rocket from from Pad 4 at Site 43 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northwest Russia on June 23 with a military payload that was kept under wraps, and described as a mission that is even more secretive than usual. The scheduled launch was only revealed at the beginning of this month.

Those speculating about the matter believe it may be the first in a new generation of military geodesy satellites that are used to measure the physical properties of Earth, or what could be a better understanding of the Earth's gravitational field for the purpose of better targeting their missile guidance systems.

The success of the launch was posted on the Russian Defense Ministry’s website.