Today and tomorrow the Russian space agency will try to fix the fault, if it is indeed a software fault. The fear is that if not, one day the spaceship carrying seven tons of toxic fuel will crash on Earth
Russian space agency scientists are scrambling to return Russia's first interplanetary mission in 15 years to Mars. If they fail, the spacecraft could become the most toxic falling satellite ever.
After launching from the Baikonur Space Center in Kazakhstan on Tuesday and separating the Phobos-Grunt spacecraft from its booster on Wednesday, the spacecraft's own engines failed to generate two thrusts that were essential to set it on course for Mars. As a result, the spacecraft got stuck in a low transit orbit around the Earth.
Before trying to restart the engines, the scientists must find out what caused the failure. Some estimate that this is a software glitch, while others speculate that the worst case scenario - a hardware or engine problem has occurred.
If it's a software problem it can be installed remotely. One theory is that a problem occurred with the navigation system. When the spacecraft was launched it used the sun as a reference point for navigation, and later switched to using the stars. Therefore, it is possible that the spacecraft was not able to position itself relative to the star systems. In this case, it will be possible to upload a software package to the spacecraft and if all goes well, the whole mission may return to the scene with a slight delay of a few days. If the problem is a hardware problem the consequences can be disastrous.
Phobos-Grunt is loaded with seven tons of toxic fuel that was supposed to propel the spacecraft in several stages of the long and complex journey. Some call the danger "the fall of the most toxic satellite so far".
Therefore, if the experts fail to determine and fix the fault and the spacecraft eventually falls to Earth, it will be necessary to purify entire areas afterwards. However, the experts will have enough time to prepare for this and prevent the disaster, or at least prevent harm to people. It is impossible to estimate where the spacecraft will fall, but scientists say it could happen anywhere between latitudes 52 degrees north and 52 degrees south, a vast area where all inhabited areas are located.
Now the Russian space agency has also been criticized for not doing enough tests on the spacecraft before launch. About 5 billion rubles (about 160 million dollars) were invested in the spaceship and in the end it had deviations both during construction and in the budget.
Russian space expert Igor Lisov says that it was clear that the Russian space agency took a risk, as the head of the space agency, Popovkin himself said on October 7th. Other experts emphasize that the need for additional tests caused a two-year delay in the launch of the spacecraft from 2009 to 2011.
Meanwhile, the European Space Agency is also mobilizing to help revive the mission tonight (Thursday) or tomorrow morning. The European Space Agency plans to involve in the operation two of its telemetry sites - in French Guiana in South America and in Australia.
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A certain exaggeration in terms of toxicity, even when it comes to Hadrazin, it must be assumed that most of it will oxidize and disperse upon entering the atmosphere, and even with God forbid by a miracle, all 7 tons will touch the ground and only then disperse, we are talking about a killing radius in terms of toxicity of hundreds of meters at the most, don't believe it ? Please, EPA freeware called Aloha.
Thanks to the answerers, and what about the second option I brought up, to launch a missile at it from a missile that will blow it up as soon as it starts to enter the atmosphere? Wouldn't that ensure the burning of all the parts before they hit the ground?
Hope it's a software issue. In the future, a self-destruction mechanism must also be planned.
It's a shame about the investment of millions, it's better to do a few more tests so that everything doesn't go down the drain.
Who knows how long they will send a spacecraft to the moon of Mars and return to Earth.
Hope it's a software issue. In the future, a self-destruction mechanism must also be planned.
It's a shame about the investment of millions, it's better to do a few more tests so that everything doesn't go down the drain.
Who knows how long they will send a spacecraft to the moon of Mars and return to Earth.
Laurie-
It's horribly complicated to send a spaceship to meet (and just touch) another spaceship. Calculation, preparation of a ready spacecraft and launch is a matter of years and can take..
In the launch of a ready spacecraft, sometimes we wait for long weeks for suitable weather, so maybe one day, but in the meantime all the space technologies are reliable and the response time is incredible..
Alirane, probably hydrazine. It is the most common fuel today…
I what is Makwa. That she will fall on the one I hate, and not on the one I love
Laurie, there is no way to send another spacecraft into orbit for several reasons
A. Budget problem, construction costs of a spacecraft of the type you propose, is much more than the price of the spacecraft sent.
B. A performance problem, as you noticed from the article, even the Russian space agency does not know exactly the orbit of the satellite, because the problem is particularly complex, and the chance of success is very small
If its fall to Earth is so dangerous, isn't it possible to send a smaller spaceship that will give it a "push" towards a higher orbit that will keep it in space? Or alternatively take care of blowing it up as soon as it enters the atmosphere (using a rocket) in order to ensure that all its parts will burn before reaching the ground?
This is the second satellite recently to fall due to "problems"... Am I the only one who finds it strange?
What fuel did they put in there?