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russia

SPACE: Russia Planning Moon Landing in October

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luna 25 - Roscosmos

Russia is revisiting its Soviet space heritage for a new series of missions that will take the nation back to the moon. The first of those missions, dubbed Luna 25, is scheduled to launch this October, ending a 45-year drought of Russian moon landings with the nation’s first arrival at the south pole, where, like everyone else targeting the moon, Russian scientists want to study water locked below the surface in permanent ice. “The moon is the center of our program for the next decade,” Lev Zelenyi, scientific advisor for the Russian Space Research Institute, said during a virtual presentation … Read more

SPACE: China and Russia to Establish Moon Base

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moon base - deposit photos

China and Russia want to build a shared moon base. The two countries agreed to the plans on Tuesday (March 9), saying the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) would be “open to all interested countries and international partners.” The “memorandum of understanding” between the two countries, announced by the China National Space Administration (CNSA), described the ILRS as a “comprehensive scientific experiment base with the capability of long-term autonomous operation, built on the lunar surface and/or on the lunar orbit that will carry out multi-disciplinary and multi-objective scientific research activities such as the lunar exploration and utilization, lunar-based observation, basic … Read more

ANNOUNCEMENT/GIVEAWAY: Pyotra and the Wolf – Elna Holst

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Pyotra And The Wolf - Elna Holst

Elna Holst has a new FF Paranormal book out: Pyotra and the Wolf. And there’s a giveaway. For the space of a breath or two, that wolf had entranced her, mesmerised her, made her believe—the impossible. And that was all it took. Nothing about this wolf was as it should be. Pyotra Nikolayevna Kulakova lives in a small Russian settlement in the northern Siberian taiga, where the polar night lasts for a good month out of the year and the temperature rarely reaches above freezing point. Pyotra’s days, too, seem congealed and unchanging, laden with grief, until her baby brother’s … Read more

SPACE: There’s a Secret Russian Satellite

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Image credit: Roscosmos

A Russian Soyuz rocket launched a top-secret military satellite designed to scope out other satellites in space on Monday (Nov. 25), according to government reports. The Soyuz-2.1v launch vehicle brought the satellite into orbit from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome, which is roughly 500 miles or 800 kilometers north of Moscow, for the Russian Defense Ministry, the ministry said in a statement. The launch took place at 12:52 p.m. EST (1752 GMT or 8:52 p.m. local time). “The spacecraft … is launched into the target orbit from which the state of domestic satellites can be monitored,” the ministry added. “The optical equipment … Read more

ANNOUNCEMENT: Barricade, by Lindsey Black

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Barricade

QSFer Lindsey Black has a new MM sci fi book out: The Barricade is all that separates the Northern Russian Empire from what remains of the world’s plague-decimated population. Snaking 8921 kilometres across Eurasia, the Barricade is crafted from the New World’s nanotechnologies. Breathing, thinking, constantly regenerating, it sustains those charged with defending its districts from those desperate to find refuge in the north. Atop the battlements of District 666, Sasha Stepanova and his team ruthlessly suppress heavy insurgencies, but at a cost. With the loss of one of his men, Sasha feels isolated and adrift. The bitter snows are … Read more

Russian Publisher Censors Fantasy Author’s Gay Storyline

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VE Schwab

A Russian publisher is under fire for censoring a gay storyline in a popular fantasy novel series without permission from the US-based author. Victoria Schwab is the author of the Shades of Magic series, which features a number of LGBT characters, including a bisexual prince who has a same-sex romance. The bestselling books were translated into Russian as part of a deal with Russia-based publisher Rosmen. However, the author was horrified to discover via a reader that the story had been doctored for the Russian translation, in order to omit the gay relationship. She tweeted: “The Russian edition of Shades … Read more

Announcement: Gnomon, by Luchia Dertien

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Gnomon

DSP Publications’ Luchia Dertien has a new Mystery book out: Emile Delaurier is a beautiful militant revolutionary, a living beacon of righteous justice for the world. For Renaire, an artist in a constant battle against the demons in the bottle, it was obsession at first sight. His devotion led to two years of homicidal partnership as Renaire followed Delaurier in his ruthless quest for equality through the death of the corrupt, like a murderous Robin Hood. Then Delaurier breaks his pattern, leading Renaire into Russia to kill a reporter with no immoral background, and gives no explanation for his actions. … Read more