FAILURE: Proton-M/DM-03 with 3xGlonass-M - July 2, 2013

[Rusty Adding Machine]

Here's a video.

http://twitpic.com/d0c2gf?utm_content=buffer58887&utm_source=buffer&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Buffer

Thanks.

My God…that's worse than I could have imagined…I really, really hope they'll be alright…

[jcm]

Based on that video, assuming the timing is correct, I get that it is swinging back and forth by T+8 seconds (or earlier); horizontal by 17 seconds, the payload breakup is around 24 seconds, and impact is at 30 seconds - anyone else got different estimates?

By 17 seconds, how high would it have been? About one km or so?
 

[Satori]

There is a short lateral deviation some two seconds after leaving the launch pad.

[William Graham]

An RD-253 failure would be most shocking.....

This one was using the newer RD-276, which is less-flown, so maybe not quite as shocking but even so, this was something like the 42nd or 43rd flight with that engine, and there are six per launch so 250 have flown without incident.

As far as I know, RD-253 went out with the Proton-K.

[Galactic Penguin SST]

This is a better version....showing live by one of the largest Russian TV news channel!



I smell something stirring up at the Kremlin..... 

[Chris Bergin]

Dare I mention it, but we did note it seemed to be very windy. Wonder how close they were to the constraints?

[cyberayhan]

Looks like computer failure?

[jcm]

There is a short lateral deviation some two seconds after leaving the launch pad.

Thanks for noting that.

Kudos to the SpaceShuttleAlmanac folks for capturing the video for the rest of us.
Really dramatic. And heartbreaking for all those who worked on the project.

I'm hoping that the huge scale of the Baykonur spaceport means that  it came down in some nice empty area.

[Chris Bergin]

This is a better version....showing live by one of the largest Russian TV news channel!



I smell something stirring up at the Kremlin..... 

Anyone want to have a go at translating?

Really doesn't seem to be far from the pad.

Didn't realise she was spinning too.

[Chris Bergin]

I wonder if anyone on the NK forum has heard confirmation about there been no causalities. It would be nice to get that concern out the way!

[Galactic Penguin SST]

Looks like no causalities.... but the rocket apparently fell near area 200 (the other Proton launch pad usually used for ILS launches)!

Source: http://www.astronomy.ru/forum/index.php/topic,18118.msg2476731.html#msg2476731

[Lee Jay]

Based on the huts visible in the last frames of the webcast, can anyone hazard a guess as to where it might have fallen?

I'm checking Anik's reference for pad 81/24 but I'm not getting oriented yet: https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=46%C2%B0+4%2715.38%22N,+62%C2%B059%275.11%22E&ie=UTF8&z=17&ll=46.070939,62.984753&spn=0.003528,0.01075&t=k&om=0

I think the camera was looking almost straight north at launch.

[jcm]

This is a better version....showing live by one of the largest Russian TV news channel!



I smell something stirring up at the Kremlin..... 

Anyone want to have a go at translating?

Really doesn't seem to be far from the pad.

Didn't realise she was spinning too.

Nothing we didn't know in the commentary to the extent that I understood it - 'failure of the launch of three glonass navigation satellites - explosion' and so on.

[Prober]

also it looks like 3 of the engines died somewhere along the launch.

[MattJL]

Looks like no causalities.... but the rocket apparently fell near area 200 (the other Proton launch pad usually used for ILS launches)!

Source: http://www.astronomy.ru/forum/index.php/topic,18118.msg2476731.html#msg2476731

So is there a risk that this crash might render both pads contaminated?

[Galactic Penguin SST]

For L2 members, here's a movie on the development of the Proton, and there's the video of almost exactly the same crash happening - except that it was in April 1969: http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=26935.0

[Lee Jay]

also could be 3 engines die?

Once it was upside down a few frames showed a clean looking hexagonal pattern of six glowing exhaust nozzles.

[spectre9]

Having a quick look at the Proton Mission Planners Guide and saw this.

The LV
executes a roll maneuver beginning at T+10 s to align the flight azimuth to the desired direction

Looks like it was out of control and all the engines were still burning properly.

[Liss]

Don't have proper word in English to comment.
A bad failure in the highly politically sensitive program in the days of political crisis.
Pretty bad even if without casualities.

[tehwkd]

This is a better version....showing live by one of the largest Russian TV news channel!



I smell something stirring up at the Kremlin..... 

Anyone want to have a go at translating?

Really doesn't seem to be far from the pad.

Didn't realise she was spinning too.

Translation may have some mistakes due to translating from russian to estonian to english

0:40 something has gone wrong
0:45 something is wrong
0:47 it seems like this is a disaster
0:50 rocket is heading towards the earth and explodes in air
0:56 explosion
and explosion*
1:01 And on air we have just seen a failed launch of proton-m rocket with the 3 glonass statellites
1:13 black smoke is now rising into the sky