Planetary Resources says launch explosion won't halt schedule

Redmond-based Planetary Resources said Wednesday the explosion of the company's first satellite, along with a Orbital Sciences Corp. rocket, would not affect the company's development schedule.

Akyrd 3, Planetary Resources' satellite, should have been a milestone for the company. But the rocket exploded within 20 seconds of launch, destroying the satellite, which was attached to the outside of the rocket.

It was Planetary Resources' first launch. The company eventually hopes to mine asteroids for precious metals and water. But the Akyrd 3 would have just gathered information and run tests.

"As this launch failure and history have demonstrated, spaceflight is inherently risky. The A3 is the first example of our strategy to 'use space as our testbed,' and to tolerate failures by building a success into the development path," said Stacey Tearne of Planetary Resources in a statement. "With the A3, the Planetary Resources' team achieved most of our objectives when we delivered the spacecraft to the launch integration site."

Planetary Resources would not answer any further questions by press time.

The company used a crowdfunding campaign in June 2013 to raise more than $1.5 million – including a hefty $100,000 donation from Virgin Atlantic CEO Richard Branson – from more than 17,600 different donors to create the satellite.

Planetary Resources also promises in-orbit selfies – where people send in photos of themselves to be added to the space background captured by the satellite – to those donors who gave more than $25.

The launch was originally set for Oct. 24 but was rescheduled for Tuesday.

General Assignment Intern