The Russian, the US, the European, the Canadian and the Japanese space agencies, who are partners in using the International Space Station, are now jointly analyzing the reasons for the crash of the Russian cargo spaceship "Progress".

"Progress" was launched on Wednesday from Baikonur, a cosmodrome in Kazakhstan rented by Russia. However, it didn't enter orbit, but fell in the Siberian taiga.

"We are working as one team," a NASA representative Kelly Humphries says. "Russia informs us about every detail.

Investigators have already found out that "Progress" fell because of some malfunction of the engine of the third stage of the carrier rocket. The engine was produced in the Russian city of Voronezh.

The Russian Prosecutor General's Office has sent a commission of investigators to the Voronezh plant. If any of the plant's workers or bosses are found guilty, they may face imprisonment.

A spokesman for the Prosecutor General's Office Victor Potapov says:

"The Russian Prosecutor General has ordered the prosecutor of Baykonur to check whether all the rules and regulations were observed during the building and the launching of the rocket. Experts in spaceships' construction must be involved to investigate why the rocket malfunctioned. The investigation will be controlled by the Russian Prosecutor General's Office."

Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has already ordered a tougher control over producing space devices and parts for them. Until all space devices which Russia already possesses or which are now under construction are fully and thoroughly checked, Russia will not perform any space launches. First of all, this conserns the spaceship "Soyuz", which will put into orbit a GLONASS satellite in early September. ("GLONASS" is a satellite navigation system, the Russian analogue of the GPS.)

However, experts are sure that Russia will restart space launches very soon. On Thursday, the same Mr. Kelly Humphries said at a press conference that NASA has no doubts that very soon, Russian spaceships, both manned and cargo ones, will resume their flights to the International Space Station.

"The crash of "Progress" will make no radical changes in Russia's space plans," Alexander Rodin from the Institute of Space Research says.

"The Russian "Soyuz" still remains the most reliable means for taking people to orbit," he says. "I see no reason why it must be stopped to be used."

At present, a crew of six is working at the International Space Station - 3 Russians, 2 US citizens and a Japanese.

NASA's experts have calculated that this crew can do without receiving new cargos till next March. But, most probably, they won't need to undergo such a trial. Initially, the next visit of "Progress" was planned for October, but, because of the accident, it will probably be launched already in September. The exact date has not yet been named, but the spaceship is already being delivered to Baykonur by railway.

Nothing has changed in the cosmonauts' schedule. On September 8, three of them will return to Earth. On September 22, another crew will come to the International Space Station.

Source: RIA Novosti