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Searches for possible area of Progress falling continue in Altai

In the Altai Republic continue searches for a possible crash site of Progress M-12M space truck

BARNAUL, August 31 (Itar-Tass) — In the Altai Republic continue searches for a possible crash site of Progress M-12M space truck, which launch from Baikonur a week earlier was a failure.

The Centre for monitoring areas of falling fragments of carrier rockets in the Siberian Region says that searches are conducted from the air in the Turachakskiy and Ulagansky districts. Earlier, similar searches have not yielded any results thus confirming so far the basic version of what happened - wracks did not reach the ground having burned in the atmosphere.

Daily samples of soil and water in Altai show no traces of rocket fuel or kerosene. For a more in-depth study, on Tuesday, samples were sent to the Moscow State University’s laboratory of the Chemistry Department.

The collapse of the cargo ship occurred on August 24. Progress M-12M, launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome, was to deliver more than 2.6 tonnes of cargo to the ISS.

Potential hazard in the area of possible falling of space wracks may come from heptyl - highly toxic rocket fuel. A source in the space industry told Itar-Tass, that the Progress carried about 800 kilograms of heptyl which was intended for use on the ISS.