Theresa Cross
March 2, 2021
A previously flown Falcon 9 rocket, B1058, will depart on October 6, 2020 from Kennedy Space Center’s LC-39A, with a bundle of Starlink satellites up. A similar rocket will fly from the same facility on Thursday, March 4, 2021. Photo credit: SpaceX
SpaceX has announced its intention to launch the next group of 60 Starlink satellites on March 4, 2021 – possibly as early as 3:24 AM EST. The mission flies from the historic LC-39A at the NASA Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where a car abortion took place with less than 2 minutes in the countdown during an earlier attempt to increase the Starlink 17 payload on February 28, 2021.
Although the cause of these last moments is unknown, it does not appear to be related to the anomaly during flight on February 15 that affected a first phase of the Falcon 9, ultimately denying the recovery of the rocket, but not the primary mission of Starlink does not affect. satellite deployment.
The first phase B1049 of Falcon 9, captured above after the fourth flight and recovery in January 2020, is expected to be launched as early as Thursday 4 March 2021. SpaceX will try to recover the first phase aboard “Of course I still love you”. , the same vessel in the photo. Photo credit: Theresa Cross / SpaceFlight Insider
Starlink 17 will be the eighth flight for the Falcon 9 booster serial number B1049, after a turnaround of about ninety days. The SpaceX drone ship “Of course I still love you” is already 633 km lower on the boards in support of the recovery of the first phase, to be assisted by Tug Hawk and GO Quest. Go Navigator and Go Searcher will try to repair the hoods that are planned to splash off the Atlantic Ocean.
The previous Falcon 9, which tried to land on the SpaceX drone ship “Of course I still love you”, failed due to a “hot gas break” on a worn boot cover for one of the Merlin engines . An unintentional gap meant that ” a little hot gas got where it should not have been, and it caused the engine to shut down, ” according to Benji Reed, senior director of human space programs at SpaceX.
Reed spoke at a NASA press conference on March 1, 2021, during which Steve Stitch, manager of NASA’s commercial crew program, said the company would continue to follow SpaceX’s investigations into the Falcon 9 rocket before the Crew-2 -mission. Crew-2, which will not take off from Florida’s Coast Coast earlier than (NET) on April 20, 2021, will fly with the same Falcon 9 first phase booster as used for the Crew-1 launch.
Tagged: anomaly B1049 Falcon 9 Starlink The Range
Theresa Cross
Theresa Cross grew up on the Space Coast. It is natural that she will develop a passion for anything that is a space and exploring it. During these formative years, she also discovers that she possesses a talent and love for defining the unique peculiarities and complexities that exist in humanity, nature and machines. Theresa comes from a family of photographers – including her father and her son – and at a very early age began documenting her world through photographs. As an adult, she now demonstrates an innate photographic ability to combine what appeals to her heart and her love of technology to deliver a diversified approach to her work and artistic presentations. Theresa has a background in water chemistry, fluid dynamics and industrial utility.