Russian Space Station Launches Cargo Flight, Crashes in Siberia

A Russian spacecraft did not reach orbit Wednesday and ignited in the atmosphere, Interfax news said. The ship was launched from Kazakhstan at 9:00 a.m. ET Wednesday and was on its way to the International Space Station.

The cargo spacecraft Progress, which did not reach orbit, crashed on the territory of (Russia's) Altai republic, a local law enforcement source said, according to Interfax.

There were no people on board.

Russia's space agency Roscosmos said in a statement that the third stage of the rocket failed 325 seconds into the launch. The Progress M-12M was not placed in the correct orbit, Roscosmos added.

According to the BBC, 1.5 tons of ISS supplies, including food, fuel, and oxygen were lost in the accident. Luckily, Atlantis delivered adequate supplies to the ISS's Expedition 28 crew last month. The crew should have enough supplies for one year, the BBC reported.

Interfax reported that debris from the spacecraft landed in Siberia.

This is the second launch failure in a week for Russia.