The 2003 Alcântara VLS accident was an accident during the Brazilian Space Agency's third attempt to launch the VLS-1 rocket, which was intended to launch two satellites into orbit. The rocket ignited on its launch pad at the Alcântara Launch Center, killing 21 people. It is officially the fourth deadliest space exploration related disaster in history.
Background The rocket, proposed in 1979 had two launch attempts until the accident: one in 1997, which ended up in the Atlantic Ocean due to the failure of one of the first stage engines to start and another in 1999, destroyed remotely due to a flame penetrating the top of the second stage block 3 minutes after takeoff. In 2000, according to Manchete magazine, the ECHELON surveillance system allegedly engaged in industrial espionage against VLS systems. The following year, when the launch was still scheduled for 2002, the Ministry of Science tripled the program's funding and the CTA conducted successful tests of the VLS engines. In November 2002, the third launch had been postponed from December 2002 to March 2003.
Operation São Luís Besides being the third flight of the VLS-1, the operation had as objectives the launch of the satellites UNOSAT and SATEC in to orbit; verify the CLA's ability to perform type launches and the use of the CLBI as a tracking station. The Satec, valued at R$ 500,000, used spare parts from other programs, had a service life of six months, weighed 65 kg, was 66 cm wide and deep, and 61 cm tall; developed by INPE, its objective was to test the technological equipment on board the rocket; Unosat, developed by the University of Northern Paraná with support from AEB, among others, was intended to be Brazil's first nanosatellite. V03 aimed to place them in a circular orbit at 15° and 750 km. The VLS-1 was valued at U$ 7 million. The transportation of materials for V03 started on August 23, 2002 and stopped on April 16, 2003. The operation was restarted on July 1, an inspection the next day found no problems, and the satellites were transported on the 30th. Tribuna da Imprensa reports that the launch was delayed three times, including in April and May, due to, among other problems, flaws in the protection of the rocket "cluster." After several assembly operations, the accident occurred on August 22, 2003. On August 17, two launch simulations took place, which led to the launch being scheduled for the 25th. Colonel Serre reports that there was no pressure to rush the launch and disregard safety regulations, a view expressed by the then-Minister of Defense, José Viegas, after the accident. However, a report by Agência Brasil on August 20 states that the date of the 25th was not yet 100% confirmed. A few days before the accident, an Air Force intelligence team was sent to the Alcântara Space Base to investigate possible disruptions to the launch plan. One of the tests conducted involved measuring radio waves in the days leading up to the launch, and nothing suspicious was detected in the region.
Accident The accident occurred three days before the scheduled launch date, at 1:26:06 pm (Brasília time) on August 22, 2003, between frames 26 and 27 recorded by the Closed Circuit TV of the Mobile Integration Tower, with professionals spread across the five floors of the tower. At the time of the accident, the rocket weighed 50 metric tons, 90% of which was solid fuel, ammonium perchlorate. An unplanned ignition destroyed the launch vehicle while on the CLA platform. 21 people died due to the ignition of a first stage engine. It took about eight seconds before the tower was enveloped by smoke and gases heated up to 3,000 °C. The mobile tower stood upright for five minutes, collapsing at 1:31. Survivors reported the noise of at least one booster running and several loud bangs. Amauri dos Santos Conceição, a safety technician at the base, reports in his diary that he waited for the authorities to remove two visible bodies, and then stayed behind to try to extinguish the remaining fires and search for other survivors. He finished his duties at the control tower at 7:55 p.m. (BRT). Due to the scale of the event, the dead were identified through a roll call and the remains were identified and sent to the IML on August 23, 2003. On the same day, the base was reopened to the press. An Estadão podcast reports that there was no checklist indicating who had entered the base and who was working on the rocket at the time of the accident. It took two days to locate the 21 victims: on the first day, 2 were recovered; on the second, 7; and on the third, 12 victims. In the first few days after the accident, the victims were listed as "missing." The remains were identified using personal belongings, dental records, and DNA testing. At the same time that the accident occurred, the president of AEB Luiz Bevilacqua, was giving a press conference about the agreement signed between Brazil and Ukraine for the use of the Alcântara base. Being informed of the accident by journalists, he ironically replied "only if it's a party skyrocket". A few minutes later, an aide confirmed the incident with a note. It was identified that the ignition process occurred prematurely, and thus the launch tower was not removed in time, which was the main cause of the fire. None of the activities, involving final adjustments to the equipment and the installation of video cameras, carried out that day posed any risk. However, the number of people at the base was well above safety standards, which allowed for only six people to be present. The accident significantly delayed the Brazilian space program.
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