The Meridian military communications satellite constellation began launching in 2006, with each satellite carrying a lifespan of seven years.

The constellation was designed to replace the aging Molniya-3 and -3K series of satellites as well as improve upon communications of the Parus constellation.

The original plan was to replace the Meridian constellation with an upgraded series of satellites starting in 2016. However, those replacements have been delayed, leading the Russian military to order a new round of Meridians.

This particular satellite will be launched into a near-polar orbit inclined 65° to the equator - meaning it will get as far north as 65° latitude and as far south as 65° latitude on each orbit.

It will operate in a highly elliptical 900 x 39,000 km orbit known as Molniya, named after the satellites that were first launched to this type of destination.

The Soyuz 2.1a/Fregat-M rocket as it is known to Roscosmos, the Russian federal space agency, is also called the Soyuz ST-A when used by Arianespace for European launches.

It is built by the Progress Rocket Space Centre (TsSKB-Progress) under the jurisdiction of Roscosmos.

The Soyuz 2.1a/Fregat-M provides medium-lift capability.

It can be launched from all three Roscosmos launch sites: the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in western Russia, and the Vostochny Cosmodrome in eastern Russia.

For Arianespace, it is primarily launched from Guiana Space Centre in South America, making it the only -- at present -- rocket to launch from more than one continent.

Image credit: CC "Yuzhny" / TSENKI / Roscosmos

The Plesetsk Cosmodrome is located 800 km north of Moscow, Russian Federation.

The site was founded in 1957 to support Union of Soviet Socialist Republics ICBM launches of the R7 missile - from which the Soyuz rockets today are derived.

Plesetsk was not as busy as Baikonur in terms of satellite launches from its founding in 1957 to 2000 due to its location and ability to only launch crafts to Molniya and polar orbits.

With the fall of the Soviet Union and the Baikonur Cosmodrome becoming foreign territory for Russia, Plesetsk has been far more active since the 2000s.

It is primarily used for military and commercial launches to high inclination and polar orbits.

It has been the site of three fatal ground accidents that have killed 58 people.

In 1973, a Cosmos-3M rocket exploded on the launch pad killing 9; in 1980, a Vostok-2M rocket exploded during fueling, killing 48; in 2002, a Soyuz-U rocket exploded killing 1 person.