Russian space agency Roscosmos has confirmed that Progress cargo spacecraft burned up it the atmosphere and its debris fell in south Siberia's Tuva Republic.
A Russian Soyuz rocket rises from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, sending a robotic Progress cargo ship into space. The ship was lost minutes later. (Roscosmos Photo)
"As a result of an abnormal situation, the loss of the Progress cargo ship took place at an altitude of 190 kilometers [some 118 miles] above an unpopulated mountainous area in Tuva; most of the fragments burned up in the [Earth's] atmosphere, according to preliminary data," Roscosmos press service said.
Earlier in the day, a source told RIA Novosti that the debris of the Progress cargo spacecraft supposedly fell in Russia's Republic of Tuva in south Siberia after it had lost telemetry exchange with the Progress MS-04 space freighter some six minutes after the launch on board a Soyuz carrier rocket. The Roscosmos press service stressed that the loss of the cargo ship will not affect the routine operations of the ISS and the crew. A state commission currently analyzes the incident.
The Russian Soyuz-U carrier rocket was launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome carrying the new Progress MS-04 cargo spacecraft. The Progress space freighter has been carrying more than 2.6 metric tons of food, fuel, and supplies for the Expedition 50 crew aboard the ISS.
"As a result of an abnormal situation, the loss of the Progress cargo ship took place at an altitude of 190 kilometers [some 118 miles] above an unpopulated mountainous area in Tuva; most of the fragments burned up in the [Earth's] atmosphere, according to preliminary data," Roscosmos press service said. A state commission currently analyzes the incident.
"The loss of the cargo ship will not affect the routine operations of the ISS and the life of the crew." Earlier in the day, Russian Soyuz-U carrier rocket was launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome carrying the new Progress MS-04 cargo spacecraft. TA regional military source told RIA Novosti that the debris of the Progress cargo spacecraft supposedly fell in Russia's Republic of Tuva in south Siberia.
"The wreckage presumably fell in Tuva, its search is being organized," the source told RIA Novosti. Another source told RIA Novosti that launches of Soyuz-U carrier rockets may be suspended until the situation with the abnormal work of the engine of the third stage is clarified. "A state investigation commission has been formed and started work at Baikonur. A decision is most likely to be made to suspend the launches of Soyuz-U carrier rockets until the investigation of the incident is over," the source told RIA Novosti. According to the source, a similar incident with the Soyuz-U launch occurred in August 2011, when the third-stage engine failed due to the clogging of a fuel line. The Progress M-12M space freighter on board the third stage failed to reach the designated orbit and disintegrated in the Earth's atmosphere during an uncontrolled fall.
