SpaceX blames failed landing on engine shutdown
Posted: Sat, Mar 6, 2021, 10:19 AM ET (1519 GMT)
SpaceX said Monday that an engine on the most recent Falcon 9 rocket shut down in flight, preventing the booster from landing. A company official said at a NASA briefing that covers insulating portions of the Merlin engines on that Feb. 15 launch were "life leaders" in the Falcon 9 fleet, with the most flight experience of such components. The cover on one engine had a small hole that allowed hot gas into the engine, causing it to shut down. The rocket was still able to successfully deploy its payload of Starlink satellites but with the failed engine the booster did not have enough thrust to make a landing. NASA said it's following the issue, but noted that the Falcon 9 first stage that will be used for next month's Crew Dragon mission doesn't have anywhere near the same level of use as the one lost on the Starlink mission.
SpaceX said Monday that an engine on the most recent Falcon 9 rocket shut down in flight, preventing the booster from landing. A company official said at a NASA briefing that covers insulating portions of the Merlin engines on that Feb. 15 launch were "life leaders" in the Falcon 9 fleet, with the most flight experience of such components. The cover on one engine had a small hole that allowed hot gas into the engine, causing it to shut down. The rocket was still able to successfully deploy its payload of Starlink satellites but with the failed engine the booster did not have enough thrust to make a landing. NASA said it's following the issue, but noted that the Falcon 9 first stage that will be used for next month's Crew Dragon mission doesn't have anywhere near the same level of use as the one lost on the Starlink mission.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
Blue Origin announces new upper stage and engine for New Glenn
Posted: Sat, Nov 7 12:07 PM ET (1707 GMT) |
|
news links
|
|
Wednesday, November 11
Firefly Aerospace Signs Multi-Launch Agreement with Synspective for up to 10 Alpha Missions Through 2030
Firefly Aerospace — 5:40 am ET (1040 GMT) Firefly Aerospace Announces Third Quarter 2026 Financial Results With Record Backlog of $1.7 Billion
Firefly Aerospace — 5:40 am ET (1040 GMT) Air Force wants AI for cislunar space vehicles
Defensescoop — 5:39 am ET (1039 GMT) Blue Origin to bring 2,000 jobs to Hutto
Community Impact Newspaper — 5:29 am ET (1029 GMT) Advocates urge Cameron County leaders to reject $24B SpaceX data center and power plant
KRGV-TV Weslaco, TX — 5:25 am ET (1025 GMT) |
