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Author
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Topic: [Discuss] Loss of Soyuz-U with Progress M-12M
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Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 09-02-2011 08:50 AM
   
quote:
Originally posted by Fezman92:
Will the unmanned ones have a Soyuz boilerplate?
The unmanned launches were scheduled prior to the loss of Progress M-12M. Both use similar upper stages, which was what failed. First will be the commercial launch of Globalstar satellites, followed by the Progress M-13M supply craft that was earlier scheduled to launch after Soyuz TMA-22. |
gliderpilotuk
Member Posts: 3398
From: London, UK
Registered: Feb 2002
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posted 09-09-2011 08:35 AM
Maybe - just for once - we can congratulate the Russians on identifying the problem within 3 weeks of the rocket failure? |
Fra Mauro
Member Posts: 1587
From: Bethpage, N.Y.
Registered: Jul 2002
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posted 09-12-2011 03:29 PM
The Russians should be congratulated on finding the problem so quickly that is true. It may or may not be a quick fix, if as the New York Times reported, it is a quality control issue. However reassuring that finding may be for space officials in Russia and at NASA, which has rented seats on the Soyuz rocket as the only means for Americans to reach space after the retirement of the space shuttle this summer, pinpointing the cause as a manufacturing flaw is likely to increase jitters about Russian safety.The commission shared this concern. "The members of the commission came to the conclusion that the manufacturing defect was accidental," it said. "But a decision can be taken to qualify it as a single instance only after a thorough re-evaluation" of quality control in the entire parts supply for the third-stage engines. The commission recommended that the space agency put into effect a better quality-control program for engine parts and offered a suggestion for the plant that made the flawed pipe: "video surveillance of workers at the final assembly line." |
SpaceAngel
Member Posts: 307
From: Maryland
Registered: May 2010
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posted 10-30-2011 03:23 PM
Did the Russian space agency ever determine what caused the failure of the resupply ship in August?Editor's note: Threads merged. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 10-30-2011 03:43 PM
The third stage engine failure was ultimately attributed to a blocked kerosene fuel line. The other engines from the same production run were inspected and the blockage was found to a single occurrence anomaly. |
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