Mystery over unidentified space object ‘released by Russian satellites’

A Soyuz-2.1b rocket booster carrying a spacecraft for defence purposes blasts off from its launchpad at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in the Arkhangelsk region, Russia (Picture: Reuters)

Russia released a mysterious object into the Earth’s orbit, raising fears over potential military or experimental space operations, it was claimed.

The unknown object appeared after the launch of three satellites – Kosmos 2581, 2582, and 2583 – aboard a Soyuz-2.1V carrier rocket.

This was the Kremlin’s first space launch this year ...