A rocket carrying three satellites set to be part of Russia's Glonass navigation system --- similar to the United States' Global Positioning System --- crashed today, shortly after lift-off from the Russian-leased Baikonur launch facility in Kazakhstan.
Mission officials said the engines of the Proton-M booster rocket suddenly switched off, leading to the crash and large spill of highly toxic rocket propellant heptyl. There were, however, no reports of casualties or any immediate danger to nearby communities.
The state-run Rossiya-24 television showed footage of the rocket veering off course seconds after lift-off. It fell apart in flames in the air and crashed in a ball of fire near the launch pad.
Roscosmos, Russia's space agency, said the accident had been caused by the emergency switch-off of the rocket's engines 17 seconds into the flight.
Interfax news agency quoted an unnamed source that said launch-pad personnel were in bunkers when the rocket lifted off.
The country's state-run RIA news agency suggested in reports the switch-off could have been caused by a problem with the engine or the guidance system.
Kazakh Emergencies Minister Vladimir Bozhko announced during an emergency government meeting that the rocket contained 172 tonnes of highly toxic heptyl propellant, although Talgat Musabayev, head of Kazakhstan's space agency Kazcosmos, said nitric oxide --- which is produced when heptyl burns --- is significantly less toxic for humans.
Rain was reported in the area, so space agency officials believed toxic clouds resulting from the rocket explosion would likely not reach the town of Baikonur, an estimated 38 miles from the crash site.
Nonetheless, local residents were ordered to close shops and other public services and to stay inside their homes and not to open windows, Kazakh Interior Minister Kalmukhambet Kasymov said.
The loss of the three satellites from Russia's beleaguered Glonass network is estimated at $200 million, Rossiya-24 reported.
The system, first conceived by the Soviet Union more than 40 years ago, has been plagued by a series of failed launches, including one in 2010 in which three other satellites were lost, and by suspicions of corruption and embezzlement.
The program's chief designer was dismissed in 2012 under a fraud investigation.
The Proton rocket, also known by its UR-500 code, had its first flight tests in the mid-1960s and was originally designed as an intercontinental ballistic missile to be aimed at the United States.
Reuters reports Russia plans to spend more than 300 billion rubles ($9.1 billion) on Glonass by 2020, as well as increase spending on space exploration and plans to send a probe to the moon in 2015.
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