Euro ion-rocket sat launch success

The European space agency's dart-shaped GOCE satellite, designed to skim through the extreme upper atmosphere using ion drives to compensate for air drag, has launched successfully from Plesetsk cosmodrome in northern Russia. Artist's impression of the GOCE spacecraft in orbit GOCE had been scheduled for launch yesterday, …

[Anonymous Coward]

T- minus 7 seconds (again)

Leans out of booth and shouts:

'Hey , Yuri, press the button!'

[Oliver Mayes]

Ironic

They build a highly advanced satellite with what must be the precursors to impulse engines, but then get scuppered by a dodgy door? Did they need to send someone down to the shops for a can of WD40 or something?

[Nicholas EGF Berry]

WW III

Bet it crashes on the White House - Oleg, you stupid bastard, I told you to reprogramme that!

[Anonymous Coward]

Elite

Wasn't this how you refuelled in Elite?

[Remy Redert]

Sabotage

The real reason for the failure of the launch tower doors is obvious. American spies welded all the doors on all the missile sites in the (former) USSR shut in the early 80s in preparation for a nuclear strike.

With the doors welded shut, the Russians would be unable to launch their ICBMs in time. Ofcourse just as this massive and top secret project neared completion, the USSR fell over and died.

[Fred]

Good good...

Hope this research goes well!!! :) kudos to the engineers and all involved!