(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-03-15 16:34

MOSCOW -- A Russian rocket failed to send into orbit a United State's communication satellite that was launched from Central Asia's Baikonur space center early Saturday, news agencies reported.

The AMC-14 satellite, atop of a Proton-M carrier rocket, was put into a orbit with the apogee altitude of 28,000 kilometers instead of the planned 36,000 kilometers, the Itar-Tass news agency said, citing Russian space agency Roskosmos.

The rocket blasted off at 02:18 Moscow time Saturday (2318 GMT Friday) from the Baikonur space center.

The failure was caused by the booster engine, which stopped working before the planned time after its second starting, space specialists were quoted as saying.