Russian Space Probe Crashes Into Pacific Ocean ~ Pare News

Senin, 16 Januari 2012

Russian Space Probe Crashes Into Pacific Ocean

Posted by immunk pare on 01.32

Thank you for using rssforward.com! This service has been made possible by all our customers. In order to provide a sustainable, best of the breed RSS to Email experience, we've chosen to keep this as a paid subscription service. If you are satisfied with your free trial, please sign-up today. Subscriptions without a plan would soon be removed. Thank you!

Phobos-Grunt, the failed Russian space probe that was slated to visit the Martian moon Phobos, crashed into the Pacific Ocean, Russian news agencies report.

The probe hit Earth at around 12:45 p.m. EST Sunday, some 775 miles west of the coastal island of Wellington.

“Phobos-Grunt fragments have crashed down in the Pacific Ocean,” Alexei Zolotukhin, an official with Russia’s Defense Ministry, said to Ria Novosti.

The probe, described by one expert as the "most toxic falling satellite ever," was launched on Nov. 9, 2011 with a mission to take soil samples from Phobos and fly them back to Earth. However, shortly after launch it stopped responding to commands, and in December the European Space Agency said it will stop attempts to save it.

If it were successful, the $165-million probe would be Russia’s first successful interplanetary mission in over 20 years.

[via Reuters]

More About: fobos-grunt, Phobos-Grunt, russia, space probe

For more Tech coverage: