Progress M-27M vessel is said to be out of control
It's the rocket's return, not its takeoff, that has space fans talking. (Photo: NASA Twitter)
Moscow: Russia said an unmanned supply ship set for the International Space Station will fall back to Earth on Friday and burn up in the atmosphere, after the spacecraft suffered a communications failure. The Progress supply ship is expected to "end its existence on May 8," between 1.23am and 9.55pm, Moscow time," the Russian space agency said in a statement released on Wednesday.
"The space ship will completely burn up in the layers of the atmosphere and only a few small parts of elements of its construction could reach the surface of our planet," the space agency said.
It said the crash would be similar to a planned descent. Russia sends three or four such spacecrafts per year to supply the ISS. They then fall back to Earth and burn up in the atmosphere above the Pacific Ocean. The spacecraft blasted off for the ISS on April 28 carrying cargo including oxygen, water and spare parts. But a few hours after launch, mission control lost contact with it.
( Source : AFP )
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