Latest news with #UmbraSpace
Yahoo
01-08-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Russian nuclear submarine base hit by tsunami
Russia's far east nuclear submarine base appears to have been damaged by the tsunami that swept the country's Pacific coast on Wednesday, according to satellite imagery obtained by The Telegraph. The waves, triggered by an 8.8 magnitude earthquake, hit the Rybachiy base in Kamchatka peninsula, which houses most of the nuclear submarines in Russia's Pacific Fleet. A section of one pier has bent away from its original position, possibly indicating that it was detached from its moorings, images taken by the Umbra Space satellite on Thursday morning have revealed. It does not appear that a submarine was moored alongside at the time of impact and experts said damage to the structure alone would have little military significance. However, questions were raised about whether the tsunami caused any further harm to the base, which was thought to have been hit within 15 minutes of the earthquake. The nuclear submarines housed there, including newer Borei-class craft and Soviet-era Deltas, are the closest to the US aside from those on forward deployment. Rybachiy sits inside Avacha Bay, around 75 miles west from the earthquake's epicentre. Also in the bay are the Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky naval base, and separate missile-loading and shipyard facilities. Footage recorded elsewhere on Russia's eastern coast showed waves up to five metres high swamping the shore. Heavy damage can be seen in the port of Severo-Kurilsk, around twice as far from the earthquake's epicentre as Avacha Bay. In satellite photographs taken on July 17, a submarine can be seen moored at the pier that now appears to have been damaged. In both sets of imagery, a surface ship is moored on the western side of the pier. Umbra Space uses synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites, which can penetrate the cloud cover that has prevented other systems from gaining a clear picture of the tsunami's impact on Rybachiy. Dr Sidharth Kaushal, a research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute (Rusi), said that there was no sign of any damage to the submarine fleet. 'It looks like it was a surface ship that was moored at the pier rather than a submarine, which is noteworthy,' he said. 'I'm not sure we can really ascertain more than that a pier was damaged, [which] I suspect probably won't change the tempo of activity [at the base] much at all.' The pier has been left at a 'terrible angle', said Tom Sharpe, a retired Royal Navy commander, which would make it awkward for a ship to enter or exit. There appears to be a tugboat by the tip of the twisted section, he added, which could be involved in initial repairs. 'If the base assumption is that a wave got in there and bent that jetty then yes, what else did it do?' Mr Sharpe asked. Submarines could be damaged by smacking hard into their moorings and water could enter open hatches or access points. In separate Umbra imagery shared online, two submarines can be seen still moored at their piers after the tsunami. Boats undergoing maintenance would be particularly vulnerable to powerful waves, unable to set sail and escape. Credit: east2west However, experts stressed there was no sign of damage to the craft and the piers used by nuclear submarines are designed to withstand seismic impacts. Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin's chief spokesman, said the 'earthquake resistance' of buildings and functioning alert system had ensured there were no casualties across Kamchatka. A retired Russian navy officer, who told the War Zone website he had not heard of any serious harm to Rybachiy, said: 'These bases were designed and built with the possibility of a nuclear attack by the enemy in mind.' The facility would have been shielded somewhat by the geography of the bay. Even minor damage to the base, however, has led some to question whether Moscow is wise to harbour so many of its Pacific Fleet assets in a single location. 'This is why having multiple bases is a good idea, because you never know when you're going to get rogered by something you haven't seen coming,' said Mr Sharpe. The Russian navy might also reconsider the construction standards of the apparently damaged pier. While the other nine at the base are built entirely out of concrete, a lengthy top section of that one appears to be a floating extension. 'It looks classically Russian,' Mr Sharpe said. 'Taped on.' Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
The Irish Sun
01-08-2025
- Politics
- The Irish Sun
Satellite pics reveal Russian base housing Putin's nuke subs WAS damaged in quake tsunami – with entire pier snapped off
NEW satellite pictures have revealed the base housing Vladimir Putin's prized nuclear submarines was damaged in the recent tsunami. A Advertisement 7 New satellite pictures of the base show a pier that appears to be snapped in half Credit: Umbra SAR post-event 7 The submarine base before the earthquake Credit: Google/Maxar 7 The Borei II-class can be nuclear-armed Credit: ckb-rubin 7 Rybachiy submarine base in Russia's far east houses Vlad's prized nuclear-armed Borei-class subs. Images taken by Umbra Space reveal that a pier which has been used to host both ships and submarines is now sitting at an angle. That would suggest it has come loose from the wharf it may have been tied to or entirely broken off. If a submarine was sitting next to the pier at the time it could have sustained serious damage. Advertisement Read more on world news But the pictures are not clear enough with the Kamchatka peninsula covered by cloud on Wednesday and Thursday. The photos also don't clarify whether submarines visible in them were damaged. Putin's prized boats may have smashed up against their piers and wharves as the tsunami came through - damage not visible from a satellite. Also in Avacha Bay is Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky naval base and separate missile-loading and shipyard facilities, but it is not known whether they have been damaged yet. Advertisement Most read in The US Sun The earthquake hit off the coast of Kamchatka just before 1am BST on Tuesday and is the sixth biggest on record. The base was so close to the epicentre that the tsunami is thought to have hit it within 15 minutes. Russian mountains crumble after huge 8.8 earthquake strikes It hit just 75miles southeast of Russia's key naval base in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky that houses its Pacific Fleet. Locals in the village of Severo-Kurilsk in Kamchatka caught video of the resulting tsunami flooding a fish processing factory on the coast. Advertisement Despite being further away than the base, Severo-Kurilsk was swamped with waves up to five metres high. The local port was inundated with buildings even being moved by the force of the water. 7 The port of Severo-Kurilsk flooded due to tsunami triggered by the 8.8 magnitude earthquake Credit: Getty 7 A Borei II-class submarine, five of which are in Russia's Pacific Fleet Credit: ckb-rubin Advertisement The Russian Pacific Fleet has some 600 warships and is thought to have five of the Borei class submarines. It also has a couple dozen Soviet-era subs, including the Oscar, Delta, and Kilo classes. The bulk of the fleet is homeported in Vladivostok, 1,400miles to the southwest. Putin will be particularly nervous about its condition given how much of his Black Sea fleet he has lost to Ukraine's bombs. Advertisement Umbra Space is able to take the photos as it uses Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellites which are able to penetrate cloud cover. The Kremlin announced that no one in Russia had died from the monster earthquake. In nearby Japan, some 2million people were ordered to evacuate from the costs with fears the tsunami could lead to a second Fukushima nuclear disaster. Evacuations were also ordered in Hawaii with waves hitting the islands 1.5m high. Advertisement 7 A map of Rybachiy Submarine base and Avacha Bay Credit:
The Sun
01-08-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
Satellite pics reveal Russian base housing Putin's nuke subs WAS damaged in quake tsunami – with entire pier snapped off
NEW satellite pictures have revealed the base housing Vladimir Putin's prized nuclear submarines was damaged in the recent tsunami. A pier has been snapped in half after being battered by the torrent of water following the monster 8.8 magnitude earthquake on Tuesday. 7 7 Rybachiy submarine base in Russia's far east houses Vlad's prized nuclear-armed Borei-class subs. Images taken by Umbra Space reveal that a pier which has been used to host both ships and submarines is now sitting at an angle. That would suggest it has come loose from the wharf it may have been tied to or entirely broken off. If a submarine was sitting next to the pier at the time it could have sustained serious damage. But the pictures are not clear enough with the Kamchatka peninsula covered by cloud on Wednesday and Thursday. The photos also don't clarify whether submarines visible in them were damaged. Putin's prized boats may have smashed up against their piers and wharves as the tsunami came through - damage not visible from a satellite. Also in Avacha Bay is Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky naval base and separate missile-loading and shipyard facilities, but it is not known whether they have been damaged yet. The earthquake hit off the coast of Kamchatka just before 1am BST on Tuesday and is the sixth biggest on record. The base was so close to the epicentre that the tsunami is thought to have hit it within 15 minutes. Russian mountains crumble after huge 8.8 earthquake strikes It hit just 75miles southeast of Russia's key naval base in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky that houses its Pacific Fleet. Locals in the village of Severo-Kurilsk in Kamchatka caught video of the resulting tsunami flooding a fish processing factory on the coast. Despite being further away than the base, Severo-Kurilsk was swamped with waves up to five metres high. The local port was inundated with buildings even being moved by the force of the water. 7 7 The Russian Pacific Fleet has some 600 warships and is thought to have five of the Borei class submarines. It also has a couple dozen Soviet-era subs, including the Oscar, Delta, and Kilo classes. The bulk of the fleet is homeported in Vladivostok, 1,400miles to the southwest. Putin will be particularly nervous about its condition given how much of his Black Sea fleet he has lost to Ukraine's bombs. Umbra Space is able to take the photos as it uses Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellites which are able to penetrate cloud cover. The Kremlin announced that no one in Russia had died from the monster earthquake. In nearby Japan, some 2million people were ordered to evacuate from the costs with fears the tsunami could lead to a second Fukushima nuclear disaster. Evacuations were also ordered in Hawaii with waves hitting the islands 1.5m high. 7
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Destroyed Russian bombers seen in first satellite images after Ukrainian drone strike
The first satellite images have emerged showing the aftermath of a major Ukrainian drone strike on Russia's Belaya air base in Irkutsk Oblast, revealing significant damage to Moscow's fleet of strategic bombers, geospatial intelligence consultant Chris Biggers posted on X on June 2. The strike was part of a coordinated operation by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) targeting multiple Russian military airfields. The photos, captured by U.S. aerospace company Umbra Space, appear to confirm the destruction of at least three Tu-95MS strategic bombers and one Tu-22M3 aircraft, with an additional Tu-95MS visibly damaged. Another image shows two more likely destroyed Tu-22M3 bombers on the field. The SBU carried out the massive drone attack on June 1, which reportedly hit 41 Russian aircraft across four different airfields. Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council official Andrii Kovalenko, head of the Center for Countering Disinformation, said at least 13 Russian aircraft were destroyed in the attack, with more damaged. The claims could not be independently verified. According to a source in the SBU who spoke to the Kyiv Independent, the operation — codenamed "Spider Web" — involved smuggling first-person-view (FPV) drones deep into Russian territory. The drones were hidden in mobile wooden cabins on trucks and remotely launched at the right moment to strike bombers used in missile attacks on Ukrainian cities. The Belaya air base, over 4,000 kilometers (2,500 miles) from Ukraine, was among the most distant targets. Other bases included the Olenya (Murmansk Oblast), Diaghilev (Ryazan Oblast), and Ivanovo (Ivanovo Oblast) air bases. The SBU said the strikes disabled 34% of Russia's cruise missile bombers and inflicted approximately $7 billion in damage. Russia's Defense Ministry later admitted to a "terrorist attack" on the four air bases, saying "several units of aircraft caught fire." The scale and reach of the operation, enabled by low-cost FPV drones, underscore Ukraine's growing long-range strike capabilities, especially against aircraft that have long launched missile barrages from deep inside Russian territory. SBU Chief Vasyl Maliuk and President Volodymyr Zelensky reportedly oversaw the long-planned operation. On the evening of June 1, Zelensky described the operation as "brilliant," adding that Russia suffered "significant losses — entirely justified and deserved." "What's most interesting, and this can now be stated publicly, is that the 'office' of our operation on Russian territory was located directly next to FSB headquarters in one of their regions," he said in a post on social media. "In total, 117 drones were used in the operation with a corresponding number of drone operators involved," he added. Read also: 34% of Russian strategic missile bombers at main airfields damaged in Ukrainian drone operation, SBU reports We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
