Unmanned Russia Rocket Explodes After Liftoff

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, October 16, 2002

Unmanned Russia Rocket Explodes After Liftoff

A Russian booster rocket exploded on Tuesday night shortly after liftoff. Therefore, an unmanned satellite failed to enter orbit, according to the Interfax news agency.

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A Russian booster rocket exploded on Tuesday night shortly after liftoff. Therefore, an unmanned satellite failed to enter orbit, according to the Interfax news agency.

The press service of Russian mission control center outside Moscow said that a Soyuz (Union)-U rocket, carrying a Foton-M satellite, blasted off from the Plesetsk cosmodrome in Russia's northern Arkhangelsk region at 22:20 Moscow time (1820 GMT).

After 29 seconds of flight, the telemetric communications with the rocket and satellite were cut.

Experts only confirmed that the rocket exploded 29 seconds after liftoff. However, they declined to comment on the current condition of the satellite.

Investigations into the incident are underway.

According to the Itar-Tass news agency, the Foton-M was to operate as an orbital laboratory, containing technological and research experiments from Russia, and countries in the European Space agency as well as the United States, Canada, Indonesia and Japan.

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