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 Technical data relayed from Orbital’s Antares rocket before and
after Tuesday’s liftoff from Wallops Island, Virginia, show
everything was fine until the rocket’s ascent stopped 15 seconds
into the flight, the company said in a status report issued late
Thursday.
NASA TV showed the rocket falling back toward the ground and
exploding into a massive fireball, showering the southern third of
Wallops Island with debris.
The accident destroyed a cargo ship filled with more than 5,000
pounds (2,268 kg) of equipment and supplies for the International
Space Station, a $100 billion research complex that hovers about 260
miles (418 km) above Earth.
Virginia-based Orbital Sciences is one of two firms NASA has hired
to fly cargo to the station following the retirement of the U.S.
space shuttles in 2011. The Antares rocket, which uses a pair of
refurbished Soviet-era engines to power its first stage, previously
flew four times, all successfully.
The 14-story Antares rocket was flying for the first time with a
new, heavier-lift upper-stage engine. “Evidence suggests the failure
initiated in the first stage after which the vehicle lost its
propulsive capability and fell back to the ground impacting near,
but not on, the launch pad,” the status report said.
Before the rocket hit the ground, a Wallops Flight Facility safety
officer sent commands to detonate explosives on the booster, a
standard procedure to assure wayward rockets do not threaten
populated areas.
Preliminary analysis indicates the pad, the only one certified for
Antares rocket launches, escaped major damage, Orbital said.
The Federal Aviation Administration, which oversees commercial
spaceflights in the United States, required Orbital to purchase $56
million of insurance coverage for third party losses and $44 million
for loss of government property for this flight, FAA spokesman Hank
Price wrote in an email to Reuters.
The Antares rocket has been grounded, pending the results of the
investigation. Its next launch, slated for April, likely will be
delayed.
“In order to ensure the safety of the public, Orbital must present
credible corrective action in order for the FAA to authorize any
future launches of this vehicle,” said the FAA.
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Antares uses two heavily modified NK-33 engines originally built for
a Soviet moon program that was abandoned after repeated in-flight
failures. GenCorp Inc's Aerojet Rocketdyne division bought about 40
of the mothballed engines for refurbishment and resale as AJ-26
motors.
In addition to limited supply, the AJ-26 has had technical issues,
including an explosion in May during a ground test.
Two weeks ago, Orbital Sciences told investors on a conference call
that it had decided on a replacement engine, but did not announce
the selection.
The Russian news agency Tass reported on Friday that Orbital has
chosen another Russian motor, the RD-193, manufactured by
Moscow-based NPO Energomash.
If true, the decision may stoke ongoing controversy over the use of
Russian engines in U.S. rockets. The Atlas 5, one of two rockets
used primarily for U.S. military missions, is powered by another
Energomash engine, the RD-180.
Moscow threatened to cut off exports of the RD-180 for U.S. military
missions in response to U.S. trade sanctions spurred by Russia’s
annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula. So far, however, business
has continued uninterrupted, says United Launch Alliance, a Boeing
and Lockheed Martin partnership that manufactures and flies the
Atlas rocket.
(Editing by David Adams, Bernard Orr)
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