Space Station Supply Rocket Explodes on Launch

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An unmanned space station supply rocket exploded into a fireball tonight seconds after launch from Wallops Island, Virginia. No injuries were reported.

Orbital Sciences Corp. said in a Tweet shortly after the 6:22 p.m. ET explosion that there had been "a vehicle anomaly."

"This shows how difficult and maddening this business really is," Bill Gerstenmaier, associate administrator of NASAs Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, said in a news conference tonight.

It was not immediately clear what went wrong with today's launch. Officials said they will begin investigating the cause at daybreak. The rocket started going awry six seconds into flight and the range safety officer sent a self-destruct command 14 seconds after that.

NASA

PHOTO: The Orbital Sciences Corporation Antares rocket, with the Cygnus spacecraft onboard, is seen in this Oct. 28, 2014 still from NASA.

This launch was the third of eight International Space Station cargo resupply missions under NASA's $1.9 billion contract with Orbital Sciences Corp. of Dulles, Virginia. Orbital provides the launch vehicle and cargo spacecraft and NASA runs the range operations. The rocket and payload were worth $200 million and it's not known how much damage was done to the launch facility, officials said.

The Antares rocket was carrying 4,483 pounds of equipment to the station including 1,360 pounds of food. The rocket held a Cyngus cargo logistics spacecraft that was to have orbited above the Earth and was set to dock with the ISS on Nov. 2. Orbital Sciences had said this was the first use of its upgraded Castor 30XL second stage motor, which enables greater lift capacity.

NASA

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Space Station Supply Rocket Explodes on Launch