A rocket exploded just after it launched from a NASA launchpad on Virginia's eastern shore bound Tuesday evening on a supply mission to the International Space Station.
Scientists were scrambling to figure out what went wrong as Orbital Sciences' Antares rocket, carrying an unmanned Cygnus capsule hauling thousands of pounds of space gear, exploded in a fireball just after its 6:22 p.m. ET blast-off.
Nobody was believed to have been injured, though there was significant damage to the equipment.
The launch was supposed to kick off the third in a series of eight planned Orbital delivery missions to ferry crucial equipment and food to astronauts.
This one was also supposed to carry a trove of science experiments.
More information:
An unmanned Antares rocket was launched 6:22 EST from the Virginia Coast to deliver goods to the International Space Station. However, a few seconds after lift-off, the bottom of the rocket got caught up into flames, following the descent of the craft back to the ground and an enormous explosion when it hit the pad
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Antares Rocket explodes!
Footage of the #Antares liftoff, explosion, and crash.
NASA Antares Rocket EXPLOSION - Failed Launch
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#Antares #Antares #Antares
