Heavy “Proton” successfully launched satellite “Ray” into orbit – RBC

The launch vehicle” Proton-M “, the archive

Photo: ITAR-TASS

Heavy rocket “Proton-M” upper stage “Breeze-M” successfully launched into the target orbit relay satellite “Ray.” It was the fifth space launch using the “Proton” in 2014 and the first after the accident in May this year.

«at 09:26 MSK spacecraft cleanly separated from the upper stage” Breeze-M “and went on desired orbit, “- said the press service of the Russian Space Agency.

« Proton-M “was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on Sunday, September 28 at 00:23 MSK. Branch orbiter as part of the upper stage “Breeze-M” spacecraft and “Ray” from the third stage of the launch vehicle was in normal mode.

In May 2014 the carrier rocket “Proton-M” was not able to launch the “Express-AM 4P». 540 seconds of flight at a speed of seven kilometers per second there was an extraordinary situation, which was that the device was not able to enter the previously calculated orbit and crashed to the ground.

In June, the head of Roscosmos Oleg Ostapenko said that the cause of the accident, “Proton-M” was the destruction of the bearing in the steering engine turbopump assembly of the third stage of the rocket.

Spacecraft “Ray” is designed and manufactured JSC “Information Satellite Systems” Academician Reshetnev “under the Federal Space Program of Russia for 2006-2015. System Relay “Ray” is designed to provide communication of the Russian segment of the International Space Station, LEO spacecraft, rockets, boosters with ground stations.

Launch vehicle “Proton” and the upper stage “Briz-M” developed and commercially produced FSUE “State Research and Production Space Center Khrunichev.” Upgraded “Proton-M”, equipped with the upper stage “Breeze-M”, is able to deliver to geosynchronous transfer orbit a payload of more than 6 tons.