India's ambitious space program suffered a serious setback as its rocket carrying an advanced communication satellite GSAT-5P exploded after lift off. It was at 4:04 pm (almost 20 minutes ago from now) that the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched the rocket, with a 2,310 kg GSAT-5P satellite costing about Rs 125 crore. It rose into the sky with a deep roar, emitting thick orange flame at its tail. And suddenly it exploded and disintegrated into pieces.
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Indian communication satellite GSAT-5P ready to lift off |
The launch was originally scheduled for Nov 20 but was aborted a day earlier after a leak was detected in one of the valves of the Russian-made cryogenic engine. Later, tests ensured the stability of the valve. The ISRO gave the go-ahead for a Christmas day launch. The Russians had supplied seven cryogenic engines long back, and India has used six of them till date.
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