RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AP) -- Brazil successfully
launched its first rocket into space, 14 months after a devastating accident
that killed 21 space agency employees and damaged the reputation of the
country's space program.
The two-stage rocket, named VSB-30, or Brazilian
Exploration Vehicle, was launched Saturday afternoon from the Alcantara launch
site in Maranhao, about 1,700 miles north of Rio de Janeiro, said officials with
the Brazilian Air Force's Research and Development Department.
The successful launch would not only restore the
reputation of Latin America's first space program, but it would also allow it to
follow through on plans to export the rockets to the European Space Agency where
it would reportedly replace the equivalent British-made Skylark
rocket.
Brazil plans to sell up to 15 of the rockets, which
can carry up to 870 pounds and fly up to 155 miles.
The program was dealt a huge blow in August 2003 when
its VLS-1 VO3 rocket exploded in a fiery ball on the launch platform three days
before its scheduled launch. The rocket was carrying two research
satellites.
The report on the disaster investigation confirmed
that an electrical flaw triggered one of the rocket's four solid fuel boosters
during final preparations at the seaside launch pad.
The accident was the third failure for Brazil's space
program, but it was the first in which anyone died. In 1997, a rocket launched
from Alcantara crashed into the Atlantic Ocean shortly after liftoff. In 1999,
officials destroyed a rocket after it veered off course three minutes after
takeoff.
Air force officials said Saturday's launch was
supervised by teams from the Brazilian Space Agency and the German Space
Center.
The Alcantara base is considered an excellent launch
site because of its location. It sits just 2.3 degrees south of the Equator, the
line at which the Earth moves the fastest, helping propel rockets into space
while using up to 13 percent less fuel. This allows the rockets to carry heavier
payloads.