The
launch of the Proton-M carrier rocket with the Ekspress-AM4R
spacecraft on board failed due to problems in the propulsion system of the third stage of the
carrier rocket and the satellite was not launched into orbit. The Express-AM4R is believed to be the most powerful and high-tech Russian communications satellite. While at the orbit, it was supposed to provide Internet access in remote and inaccessible regions of Russia at affordable prices.According to representatives of the space industry, the unit cost is about one billion rubles (28.8 million dollars).The Proton-M carrier
rocket with the Breeze-M upper stage and the Ekspress-AM4R communication
satellite was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on
Friday night. Meanwhile, a statue of the Sphinx was found on Mars.