Russian rocket fails after launch
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
An unmanned Russian rocket carrying a Japanese communications satellite malfunctioned after liftoff Thursday, sending parts crashing in an uninhabited part of Kazakhstan and triggering concerns about environmental damage.
Nobody was hurt, but the crash was a potential blow to Russia’s program for commercial satellite launches.
The Proton-M rocket failed to put the JCSAT-11 satellite into orbit because of a problem with the second stage about two minutes after launch, said International Launch Services, the U.S.-based American-Russian joint venture.
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