2 July 2013. RIA-Novosti Infographics. Technical Specifications of the Proton-M Carrier Rocket

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On 2 July, a Proton-M transport rocket, launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, failed a minute after lift-off. Over the past two and a half years, this is the seventh failed Russian space launch. See our infographic for the specifications of the Proton-M rocket. The Proton-M heavy-duty Launch Vehicle (LV) is designed to launch an unmanned spacecraft into Earth orbit and then into space. The Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Centre developed the vehicle, which Roskosmos uses to launch Russian and foreign government and commercial spacecraft. Proton-M is the workhorse of the Russian space programme; at present, it’s carrying the GLONASS satellite system and Ekpress communications satellites, which will provide coverage all over Russia. Read more >> For now, Proton-M launches are on hold, after two or three days, it’ll be clear what happened to the rocket. Indeed, it’s a fairly straightforward and well-proven piece of equipment. A space programme source said, “It’s clear that it wasn’t a glitch with the rocket; it was human error”.

On the possible causes of the Proton accident >>

Other Russian space failures in 2005-13 >>

2 July 2013

RIA-Novosti

http://ria.ru/infografika/20130702/947036250.html

http://en.ria.ru/infographics/20130702/182009409/Proton-Carrier-Rocket.html

Click here for more on the Proton-M Baikonur launch failure

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Roskosmos Scheduled to Launch US Satellite in February

Russian Proton-M carrier rocket

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On Thursday, a spokesman for the Federal Space Agency Roskosmos said it’s preparing a Proton-M carrier rocket for the launch of the US Sirius FM-6 telecom satellite, saying, “The launch is tentatively scheduled for February 2012”. The assembly of the upper stage of the rocket and the testing of a Briz-M booster is underway at the Baikonur Space Centre in Kazakhstan. The Sirius FM-6 mission was originally expected in the fourth quarter of 2010, then, there was a postponement to late December 2011, and, then, further delays to 24 and 29 January 2012. The Sirius FM-6, built by Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) for Sirius Satellite Radio, is a new high-power satellite designed to operate in a highly inclined elliptical orbit (HIEO). This satellite will be the sixth SS/L-built spacecraft in the Sirius fleet.

26 January 2012

RIA-Novosti

http://en.rian.ru/russia/20120126/170964422.html

Editor’s Note:

Even American satellites are going up on Russian boosters. Newt’s gonna have a lunar base in seven years? In a pig’s arse…