BAIKONUR COSMODROME – The recent crash of Russia’s Progress MS-04 cargo spacecraft was likely prompted by damage caused to its power plant because of the third stage’s abnormal separation, a source at the Baikonur Cosmodrome told Interfax.
“After the spaceship separated from the third stage of the launch vehicle, its engine did not stop for some reason but continued to work. This resulted in the third stage’s hitting the spacecraft and critically damaging its power plant,” the source said.
Interfax could not immediately obtain official confirmation of this theory from Roscosmos.
Meanwhile, a government commission is continuing to investigate the causes of the crash and is considering various theories of the incident. Its findings should be made public not earlier than December 20.
It had been reported earlier that the Progress MS-04 cargo spacecraft which was launched from Baikonur on December 1 and was supposed to deliver over two tonnes of various types of cargo to the International Space Station (ISS), failed to reach the planned orbit. Contact with the Progress was lost while it was about 190 kilometers above uninhabited mountainous terrain in Russia’s Tuva republic.
