Update: CNN reports that it is possible that the explosion of the Russian missile about two weeks ago was the result of sabotage * The launch center in Plastakets has been closed until the end of the investigation. * This time the spacecraft is launched from Kazakhstan
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Avi Blizovsky
A Soyuz rocket carrying three cosmonauts took off from the launch center (cosmodrome) in Baikonur, Kazakhstan as planned on Wednesday morning to the International Space Station. This after concerns were expressed about the reliability of the launch missiles.
The rocket engine worked as planned and now the spacecraft is on its way to orbit.
"All systems are working as planned," said a spokesman for the Russian space agency.
The launch was delayed by two days due to the explosion of a similar, but unmanned, missile on October 15 in Siberia (see previous news later in this file).
Originally it was planned to take off in this rocket the lead singer of the band An-Sing Lance Base, however he was not able to collect the necessary amount of 20 million dollars and therefore he was sent back home.
Tonight the Soyuz will be launched with 2 Russian and XNUMX Belgian cosmonauts despite the attack from two weeks ago
Tonight at 3:11 GMT (5:11 am Israel time) a Soyuz rocket with three people inside it - two Russian cosmonauts and a Belgian cosmonaut - is scheduled to take off from Baikonur in Kazakhstan. The three will take off for a week-long stay at the International Space Station. They will leave the Soyuz spacecraft at the station as an escape vehicle and return with the previous escape vehicle, also a Soyuz model.
So far, the opinion has been widespread among the personnel of the Russian space agency that the launch should be postponed until the clear conclusion regarding the malfunction that caused the explosion of an unmanned rocket on December 15. Yesterday the Russians announced that it was probably an attack because they found iron and chromium - materials not used in missiles and satellites - in the remains of the missile that fell on the launch pad in Siberia.
Update: CNN reports that it is possible that the explosion of the Russian missile about two weeks ago was the result of sabotage
The director of the space agency said on Monday, 28/10/2002 that the investigation into the explosion of a Suiz rocket carrying a European satellite about a week ago was caused by hostile intentions.
The director, Yuriy Koptev, said that a foreign object was inserted into the tube feeding hydrogen to one of the rocket's engines. Residues of iron and chrome - materials that are not usually used in the production of this pipe were found in the remains of the engine that fell back onto the launch pad and caused the death of a Russian soldier and the injury of about ten people on October 15. Therefore, Russia postponed a manned launch initially scheduled for October 28 to the International Space Station.
For the full story on CNN
Here is the previous news:
Russia is suspending the flight to the space station until the end of the investigation into last week's accident
20/10/2002
Russia is suspending the manned flight to the International Space Station that was planned for October 28, until the end of the investigation of the explosion of the unmanned rocket about a week ago. The manned Soyuz rocket is an improved version of the rocket that exploded last Tuesday shortly after launch from the Arctic Cosmodrome.
The accident raised questions about the way in which Russia should maintain its share of the space station project - which has a total value of 90 billion dollars, despite the budget cuts. It is possible that the postponement will be for three-four days only. The director of the Roskey-Cosmos space agency, Yuri Kopetev, wants to finish the investigation before the next launch.
As you may remember, on this flight the lead singer of the band An-Sync, Lance Bays, was supposed to board the space station, but his flight was canceled due to non-payment of the 20 million dollars he had committed to. A Belgian astronaut is supposed to be launched in his place.
The accident on Tuesday killed a 20-year-old Russian soldier and injured six others after burning parts fell back onto the launch facility. The spacecraft that exploded was carrying a European Space Agency research satellite.
A missile exploded at the launch pad in northern Russia. A Russian soldier was killed
17/10/2002
A Russian Suiz rocket carrying a research satellite exploded in the night between Tuesday and Wednesday, seconds after launch. Due to the explosion, a Russian soldier was killed. The malfunction could also affect the planned manned launch to the International Space Station at the end of the month.
The unmanned Soyuz-U rocket exploded 29 seconds after liftoff from the Arctic Plastics Cosmodrome launch center on Tuesday night. Shrapnel from the missile rained down on the launch pad. A 20-year-old soldier was killed by the shock wave of the explosion and eight others were injured.
The rocket was carrying a satellite with research equipment from the European Space Agency and has no connection to the International Space Station, which is currently manned by two Russians and one American. However, senior officials at the Russian Control Center, which monitors the International Space Station, said that the accident could raise questions about the next manned flight to the space station, which is planned to be carried out on a similar model rocket - an improved Soyuz at the end of the month.
Two Russians and one Belgian are scheduled to be launched to the space station on October 28 for a short mission to fit a new escape vehicle to the station. The Russian-made capsule must be replaced every six months. "There are no plans to postpone the flight," says a spokesman for the Russian space program. The spokesman for the Ministry of Defense said that the launch facility will be closed until the end of the investigation. Eight rockets carrying satellites into polar orbits were launched from this field this year. Russia's main field is Baikonur in Kazakhstan, which Russia leased from its neighbor after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, but in Russia efforts are being made to launch as much as possible from plastics.
The Soyuz rockets, designed to launch manned and unmanned spacecraft into space, are the Russians' oldest launch vehicles. Even the first cosmonaut, Yuri Gagarin, flew a rocket of this model in 1961. It also has a pretty high success rate. In the last 11 years there has not been a single malfunction involving a missile of this model. However, other Russian model accelerators experienced many failures during the nineties as a result of budget cuts that caused savings in the control processes.
Apparently the Russians had enough time to conduct security tests on the current launch missile, and approved it for launch.
They knew about space programs outside the USA
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