Russian state space corporation Roscosmos told Sputnik that it would introduce video surveillance at the Baikonur cosmodrome’s site where Soyuz rockets are fueled, following an emergency during the recent launch of the EgyptSat-A satellite.
“All the necessary sites will be equipped [with video cameras],” Roscosmos said, when asked the relevant question.
In February, a source in the rocket and space industry told Sputnik that the emergency at the recent launch of the EgyptSat-A satellite was caused by premature run-out of oxidizer in the third stage of the Soyuz 2.1b carrier. According to the source, sensors indicating the oxidizer level were adjusted improperly ahead of the launch, which led to the situation that the container of the third stage of the Soyuz 2.1b was under-filled with oxidizer.
As a result, the third stage of the Soyuz rocket failed to bring the Egyptian satellite to a target orbit, and the Fregat booster was used to compensate for the orbiting error. Finally, EgyptSat-A was successfully delivered to the designated orbit and is operating in normal regime. (UNI)
Soyuz rocket fueling to be monitored by video cameras after recent emergency: Roscosmos
