@S1-A.ARPA,@MIT-MC.ARPA:ARG@SU-AI.ARPA (09/13/85)
From: Ron Goldman <ARG@su-ai.arpa>
Rocket Liftoff Fails
KOUROU, French Guiana (AP) - Space Center officials blew up the
European Space Agency's Ariane rocket less than 10 minutes after
liftoff late Thursday when it moved off course and began falling,
threatening inhabited areas, officials here said.
The order to destroy was given immediately after the rocket,
carrying two communications satellites, left its prescribed
trajectory and lost altitude, the officials said.
The failure was Ariane's third in 15 launches.
French President Francois Mitterrand, on a stopover here on his way
to French Polynesia, watched the failed launch of the European
rocket, which was made to compete with the American Space Shuttle in
the billion-dollar satellite launching business.
''It's obviously a great disappointment,'' said Frederic d'Allest,
president of Arianespace, the European Space Agency's commercial arm.
The Ariane was reported on course during the first minutes of its
ascension before suddenly veering off course and losing altitude.
D'Allest attributed the failure to a problem with the third-stage
engine.
''The third stage ignited normally, but, very quickly, it appeared
that the pressure in the combustion chamber was inferior to normal
and the stage died out shortly after,'' he said. ''At that moment,
the decision was made to destroy the rocket.''
The destroyed Ariane was to put into orbit the third of the European
Communications Satellites series, the ECS-3, and the American
Spacenet-3, built by RCA for GTE Spacenet.
Liftoff at this space center on the northeast shoulder of South
America was on schedule at 8:26 p.m. (7:26 p.m. EDT). The rocket was
destroyed nine minutes after liftoff, the officials said.
The Ariane was reported on course during the first minutes of its
ascension. There were unconfirmed reports that it suddenly veered off
course and lost altitude because of a propulsion problem in the
third-stage motor.
Ariane's two other failures were recorded May 23, 1980, on its
second launch, and May 9, 1982, on its fifth. Since then, motors were
revised, boosters were added and other important changes were made,
leading to nine straight successes.
''It will work the next time,'' Mitterrand commented as he left the
space center's Jupiter control room, where he monitored the liftoff.
''Yes, of course, I'm disappointed .... There is always a percentage
of failures. But I'm mostly disappointed for the technicians and all
those who worked on this project.''