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Titan 4-A Rocket Explosion

Cape Canaveral, Florida, August 12, 1998 An Air Force rocket carrying a top-secret spy satellite exploded in a fountain of blazing lights, smoke and toxic fuel about 42 seconds after liftoff from its Cape Canaveral launch pad early yesterday. No one was injured but the explosion destroyed hardware worth about $1.3 billion, making it among the worst American unmanned launch failures, analysts said. The cause was not known. The Titan 4A rocket, towering 20 stories high and weighing almost 2 million pounds, thundered east over the Atlantic at 7:30 a.m., after the liftoff was delayed 89 minutes. It suddenly heeled over and blew apart, according to Air Force officials and other witnesses. "Oh, no," said the launch commentator, as the breakup commenced. Two seconds later, officials said, launch controllers sent destruct signals, completing a spectacular detonation that was visible for dozens of miles in Florida.