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VLS-1 V02
VLS-1 launch
Launch11 December 1999, 18:40 p.m UTC
Operator
PadAlcântara Space Center
PayloadBrazil SACI-2
OutcomeDestroyed
Launch duration3m30s

VLS-1 V02 was the second flight of the VLS-1 rocket on December 11, 1999 from the Alcântara Launch Center, with the objective of placing the SACI-2 microsatellite in Earth orbit. The rocket was remotely destroyed 3 minutes after launch.

Origins

The mission had the objectives of placing the SACI-2 satellite in orbit at 750 kilometers from Earth, after SACI-1, launched by China, was lost due to a transmitter failure, and of continuing the certification process of the VLS rocket. It was the second launch of VLS-1, with the first being lost shortly after launch. The launch campaign was called "Operation Almenara"[1][2][3][a] and happened after the necessary modifications after the first accident had been made.[4] The total cost of the operation was US$ 7.4 million[3] and budget constraints prevented a test launch before the official launch.[5]

In March 1999 the preparations at the Alcântara Launch Center were already underway.[6] On June 18, Defense Minister Élcio Álvares observed the rocket's assembly and integration activities at the Aeronautics Institute of Technology.[7]

The launch was planned for November 20, 1999, but tests of SACI-2 in the thermo-vacuum chamber indicated a failure in one of the electronic components. The rocket was ready by the same month.[3] It was later scheduled for December 7, but was postponed due to problems with the rocket.[8] On the same day, December 7, the launch center teams wrapped up the simulated countdown.[9]

About 600 people were involved in the launch and the airspace in the region was closed for about three hours.[10]

Launch

The rocket, with 43 tons of solid fuel, was launched on December 11, 1999, at 18:40 (UTC),[11] after a ten minute delay, with the four external boosters having worked correctly, as well as the other systems. However, it was remotely destroyed after 3m30s into the mission due to the second stage not being activated. The debris fell within the interdicted area.[1][4][12]

The announcement of the failure only came one hour and 20 minutes after the accident. According to the official version, Brigadier Tiago Ribeiro, responsible for the announcement, would have been ill due to emotion after the accident.[1]

Aftermath

The announcement came from the INPE directorate in São José dos Campos, about an hour before an official military announcement. The Brazilian Air Force relied on help from fishing communities to locate the wreckage.[1] Among military circles there were rumors that the VLS had been the victim of sabotage.[13]

The Brazilian and international media had difficulty communicating with their newspapers due to overloaded Internet. The failure led INPE to cancel the microsatellite program.[1][14]

The investigation revealed that the accident was due to a flame penetration of the second stage block and the front flexible heat shield flap.[15] The next launch, VLS-1 V03, was finally scheduled for 2003.[4][11] However, on August 22, 2003, three days before the launch, the rocket was destroyed at its base due to an accidental ignition, causing 21 deaths.[16][17] VLS-1 V04 had 70% of its structure built, but the program was terminated in 2016.[18][19]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Folha de Londrina, 12 de dezembro de 1999.
  2. ^ Pioneiro, 11-12 de dezembro de 1999, p. 37.
  3. ^ a b c d Jornal do Brasil, 11 de novembro de 1999, p. 14.
  4. ^ a b c Berquó et al. 2004, p. 12.
  5. ^ Tribuna da Imprensa, 27 de dezembro de 1999, p. 4.
  6. ^ Jornal do Commercio, 10 de março de 1999, p. 4.
  7. ^ Jornal do Brasil, 19 de junho de 1999, p. 4.
  8. ^ A Tribuna, 6 de dezembro de 1999, p. 5.
  9. ^ Jornal do Commercio, 9 de dezembro de 1999, p. 13.
  10. ^ Jornal do Commercio, 11 de dezembro de 1999, p. 14.
  11. ^ a b Silva 2021, p. 353.
  12. ^ A Tribuna, 11 de dezembro de 1999, p. 6.
  13. ^ Tribuna da Imprensa, 28 de dezembro de 1999, p. 2.
  14. ^ Pioneiro, 13 de dezembro de 1999, p. 18.
  15. ^ Palmerio 2017, p. 138.
  16. ^ Olhar Digital, 30 de agosto de 2021.
  17. ^ Froehlich et al. 2020, p. 265.
  18. ^ Uol, 26 de agosto de 2022.
  19. ^ Silva 2021, p. 388.

Notes

  1. ^ Translation: "Sliver of light".[3]

Bibliography

(Cronological order)

  • "Alcântara retoma lançamento de satélites". Jornal do Commercio (in Brazilian Portuguese). Vol. 95, no. 37774. 1999-03-10. p. 4.
  • "CTA produzirá tecnologia de uso militar". Jornal do Brasil (in Brazilian Portuguese). Vol. 109, no. 72. 1999-06-19. p. 4.
  • Pacelli, Márcio (1999-11-11). "Lançamento do Saci-2 é adiado". Jornal do Brasil (in Brazilian Portuguese). Vol. 109, no. 217. p. 14.
  • "Foguete". A Tribuna (in Brazilian Portuguese). Vol. 106, no. 236. 1999-12-06. p. 5.
  • "Foguete brasileiro será lançado sábado". Jornal do Commercio (in Brazilian Portuguese). Vol. 173, no. 57. 1999-12-09. p. 13.
  • "Saci-2 deve ser lançado hoje, em Alcântara". A Tribuna (in Brazilian Portuguese). Vol. 106, no. 261. 1999-12-11. p. 6.
  • "Foguete brasileiro lança hoje o Saci-2". Jornal do Commercio (in Brazilian Portuguese). Vol. 173, no. 59. 1999-12-11. p. 14.
  • "Brasil põe novo satélite em órbita". Pioneiro (in Brazilian Portuguese). Vol. 52, no. 7489. December 1999. p. 37.
  • Ottoboni, Júlio (1999-12-12). "Inpe cancela programa de microssatélites, após fracasso com Saci-2". Folha de Londrina (in Brazilian Portuguese).
  • "Inpe cancela programa com fracasso do Saci-2". Pioneiro (in Brazilian Portuguese). Vol. 52, no. 7490. 1999-12-13. p. 18.
  • Lino, Geraldo Luís (1999-12-27). "O VLS e as pesquisas espaciais". Tribuna da Imprensa (in Brazilian Portuguese). Vol. 50, no. 15246. p. 4.
  • "Almoço de desagravo a Bräuer terá tom de indignação militar". Tribuna da Imprensa (in Brazilian Portuguese). Vol. 51, no. 15247. 1999-12-28. p. 2.
  • Berquó, Jolan Eduardo; Coelho, Elizabeth Cabral; Martinolli, João Bosco; Corrêa, Cleber Souza (February 2004). Relatório da Investigação do Acidente ocorrido com o VLS-1 VO3, em 22 de agosto de 2003, em Alcântara, Maranhão (PDF). São José dos Campos. p. 118. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2013-11-08.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Palmerio, Ariovaldo Feliz (2017). Introdução à Tecnologia de Foguetes (PDF) (in Brazilian Portuguese) (2 ed.). São José dos Campos: SindCT. p. 304. ISBN 978-85-62042-05-8.
  • Froehlich; Alonso; Soria; Marchi (2020). Latin America's Emerging Space Middle Powers. Springer International Publishing. p. 446. ISBN 9783030385200.
  • Silva, Bernardino Coelho da (2021). Desafios de Ícaro (in Brazilian Portuguese). Clube de Autores. p. 690. ISBN 978-65-00-24466-3.
  • Zurita, Marcelo (2021-08-30). "18 anos do acidente de Alcântara, a tragédia que marcou a história do Programa Espacial Brasileiro". Olhar Digital (in Brazilian Portuguese).
  • Duarte, Marcella (2022-08-26). "19 anos da tragédia em Alcântara: foguete brasileiro explodiu e matou 21". Uol (in Brazilian Portuguese).
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