Russia launched a space telescope Saturday from the cosmodrome in Baikonur, Kazakhstan, a joint project with Germany intended to replace one it lost in January. Video posted on the website of the Roskosmos, the Russian space agency, showed a Proton-M rocket carrying the Spektr-RG taking off from the launch pad at Baikonur.
The launch was originally scheduled for June 21 but was postponed twice because of a battery problem. The Spektr-RG, developed with Germany, is a space observatory intended to replace the Spektr-R, known as the "Russian Hubble", which Roskosmos said it lost control of in January.