spacetoday.net: Falcon 9 fails on cargo mission to ISS

Posted: Sun, Jun 28, 2015, 4:24 PM ET (2024 GMT)
Falcon 9 CRS-7 launch failure (SpaceX)

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket malfunctioned a little more than two minutes after liftoff Sunday morning, destroying a Dragon cargo spacecraft intended for the International Space Station. The Falcon 9 lifted off on schedule from Cape Canaveral ay 10:21 am EDT (1421 GMT) Sunday and the launch was proceeding normally until 2 minutes and 19 seconds after liftoff. According to SpaceX, there was an overpressuization of the liquid oxygen tank in the rocket's second stage, but the role that played in the failure remains under investigation. The Dragon was carrying 1,950 kilograms of cargo to the ISS, including a docking adapter to be used by future commercial crew vehicles, a spacesuit, experiments to be performed on the station, and food and other supplies for the station's crew. NASA officials said there are enough supplies on the station for the crew through at last October, with other cargo missions planned in the next two months.