Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Russian GPS Satellite Launch Fails

According to the Russian Federal Space Agency, the December 5th launch of 3 GLONASS satellites (their equivalent of GPS) failed when the Proton-M rocket carrying them failed to achieve proper orbit.  The satellites ended up crashing into the Pacific Ocean, apparently due to a software programming error.  Here's a link to the GPS World article: GLONASS Launch Fails.  It includes an interesting YouTube video of the ill-fated rocket being moved into position prior to the launch.