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No Specific Cause Found for Rocket Failure at Wallops

nasa.tv

NASA officials say they have not determined exactly why a rocket exploded a year ago at the Wallops Flight Facility.

The Salisbury Daily Times reports that the possibilities range from the bearings in a pump not being able to take the pressure and a defect in the turbine housing to foreign debris in the pump itself.

The Antares rocket was loaded with thousands of pounds of food and supplies bound for the International Space Station before it exploded 15 seconds after it was launched.

The flight was the third in the $1.9 billion contract by Orbital Sciences with NASA.

The report was the product of 12 NASA analysts.

Don Rush is the News Director and Senior Producer of News and Public Affairs at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.