[FPSPACE] Falling Space Debris in Kazakhstan (fwd)

[Max White]

This same problem was reported in The Times on September 8th with a
story from their Moscow correspondent. It was illustrated with a picture
of a fallen Proton first stage (looks like one in comparison to the
figure standing alongside it). In summarising, they say the area is
800 miles NE of Baikonur in the foothils of the Altai mountains
directly under the point where the Proton and Soyuz jettison their first 
stages 9 minutes after launch, near the village of Ploksoye. One local 
activist is considering taking the case to the council of Europe - he 
describes the stages as burning up in the upper atmosphere, then fragmenting 
into pieces from matchbox size to 15m long, and lower down the unburnt fuel 
explodes.

Altai area is given 2 days notice of launches but not of all military ones 
it seems. It quotes the 2m piece crashing in Feb and killing the cow. But 
the main problem is the unused fuel, which amounts to half a ton per launch 
and which can come down as an aerosol, turning grass and crops yellow. 
Levels of cancer and illnesses are 15 times higher than national average; 
infant brain damage, illness and premature births are so high that the chief 
surgeon at Altai Childrens Hospital is quoted as saying we have no healthy 
children here.

The local paper Segodnya reported it originally.

I gave a copy of the article to Jon McDowell and Sven when we met this last 
weekend, if it could be scanned for a webpage.

Max White
Kettering Group / Cheltenham
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