Russia to secure Brazilian rocket launch

MOSCOW, May 9 (UPI) -- Russia and Brazil will work together to ensure the safety of a Brazilian launch vehicle, Russian space officials said.

A Russian-Brazilian working group will be created for the VLS-1 rocket, the Russian space agency Roskosmos said in a news release. The decision was made during a recent visit to Brazil by a Russian delegation led by Viktor Remishevsky, deputy head of Roskosmos.

The VLS or Veículo Lançador de Satélites -- Satellite Launch Vehicle -- is a four-stage rocket using solid propellants. All three test flight tests have failed, including one in August 2003 when a VLS rocket exploded on the launch pad, killing 21 technicians.

The parties also discussed Russia participation in the reconstruction of the Alcantara launch center near the equator, the launch of a Brazilian communications satellite, and the possibility of sending a Brazilian astronaut to the International Space Station on board a Russian spacecraft in 2006.