Falcon 9

Falcon 9 launching from Pad LC-39A
Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville

SpaceX has been cleared to resume launching Falcon 9 by the FAA. Almost immediately afterward, the company announced a launch of the venerable rocket from Pad LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center early Sunday morning.

The company stated that the Starlink 9-3 mishap in a statement on their website “The cause of the leak was identified as a crack in a sense line for a pressure sensor attached to the vehicle’s oxygen system. This line cracked due to fatigue caused by high loading from engine vibration and looseness in the clamp that normally constrains the line,” SpaceX said.

In turn, “The liquid oxygen leak on the upper stage led to the excessive cooling of engine components, most importantly those associated with delivery of ignition fluid to the engine. As a result, the engine experienced a hard start rather than a controlled burn, which damaged the engine hardware and caused the upper stage to subsequently lose attitude control,” said SpaceX today.

SpaceX then outlined the fix that they will employ in the short-term future, “For near term Falcon launches, the failed sense line and sensor on the second stage engine will be removed. The sensor is not used by the flight safety system and can be covered by alternate sensors already present on the engine. The design change has been tested at SpaceX’s rocket development facility in McGregor, Texas, with enhanced qualification analysis and oversight by the FAA and involvement from the SpaceX investigation team.”

That presumes that they will be looking for a permanent fix but, in the meantime, will employ the method outlined above. It is unknown whether that will be sufficient for crewed flights — either to SpaceX, NASA, or the FAA.

FAA Statement

The FAA released the following statement:

“The FAA is responsible for and committed to protecting the public during commercial space transportation launch and reentry operations.

After a comprehensive review, the FAA determined no public safety issues were involved in the anomaly that occurred during the SpaceX Starlink Group 9-3 launch on July 11. The public safety determination means the Falcon 9 vehicle may return to flight operations while the overall investigation remains open, provided all other license requirements are met.”

SpaceX Statement

SpaceX released the following statement on their website around 6PM EDT on July 25, 2024:

SpaceX submitted its mishap report to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regarding Falcon 9’s launch anomaly on July 11, 2024. SpaceX’s investigation team, with oversight from the FAA, was able to identify the most probable cause of the mishap and associated corrective actions to ensure the success of future missions.

Post-flight data reviews confirmed Falcon 9’s first stage booster performed nominally through ascent, stage separation, and a successful droneship landing. During the first burn of Falcon 9’s second stage engine, a liquid oxygen leak developed within the insulation around the upper stage engine. The cause of the leak was identified as a crack in a sense line for a pressure sensor attached to the vehicle’s oxygen system. This line cracked due to fatigue caused by high loading from engine vibration and looseness in the clamp that normally constrains the line. Despite the leak, the second stage engine continued to operate through the duration of its first burn, and completed its engine shutdown, where it entered the coast phase of the mission in the intended elliptical parking orbit.

A second burn of the upper stage engine was planned to circularize the orbit ahead of satellite deployment. However, the liquid oxygen leak on the upper stage led to the excessive cooling of engine components, most importantly those associated with delivery of ignition fluid to the engine. As a result, the engine experienced a hard start rather than a controlled burn, which damaged the engine hardware and caused the upper stage to subsequently lose attitude control. Even so, the second stage continued to operate as designed, deploying the Starlink satellites and successfully completing stage passivation, a process of venting down stored energy on the stage, which occurs at the conclusion of every Falcon mission.

Following deployment, the Starlink team made contact with 10 of the satellites to send early burn commands in an attempt to raise their altitude. Unfortunately, the satellites were in an enormously high-drag environment with a very low perigee of only 135 km above the Earth. As a result, all 20 Starlink satellites from this launch re-entered the Earth’s atmosphere. By design, Starlink satellites fully demise upon reentry, posing no threat to public safety. To-date, no debris has been reported after the successful deorbit of Starlink satellites.

SpaceX engineering teams have performed a comprehensive and thorough review of all SpaceX vehicles and ground systems to ensure we are putting our best foot forward as we return to flight. For near term Falcon launches, the failed sense line and sensor on the second stage engine will be removed. The sensor is not used by the flight safety system and can be covered by alternate sensors already present on the engine. The design change has been tested at SpaceX’s rocket development facility in McGregor, Texas, with enhanced qualification analysis and oversight by the FAA and involvement from the SpaceX investigation team. An additional qualification review, inspection, and scrub of all sense lines and clamps on the active booster fleet led to a proactive replacement in select locations.

Safety and reliability are at the core of SpaceX’s operations. It would not have been possible to achieve our current cadence without this focus, and thanks to the pace we’ve been able to launch, we’re able to gather unprecedented levels of flight data and are poised to rapidly return to flight, safely and with increased reliability. Our missions are of critical importance – safely carrying astronauts, customer payloads, and thousands of Starlink satellites to orbit – and they rely on the Falcon family of rockets being one of the most reliable in the world. We thank the FAA and our customers for their ongoing work and support.

Falcon 9 nears staging
Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville

Starlink 10-9 Launch Scheduled

Also on SpaceX’s website, a Falcon 9 launch was announced:

SpaceX is targeting Saturday, July 27 for a Falcon 9 launch of 23 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Liftoff is targeted for 12:21 a.m. ET, with backup opportunities available until 4:21 a.m. ET. If needed, additional opportunities are also available on Sunday, July 28 starting at the same time.

Talk of Titusville will publish a comprehensive launch preview tomorrow, Friday 26.

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Starliner docked at ISS.
Photo: NASA

NASA’s Steve Stich and Boeing’s Mark Nappi provided an update on the Starliner CFT flight today in a teleconference. They stated that while no return date has been set for astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to return aboard the spacecraft, the agency and Boeing are relatively close to a Readiness Review that must be conducted prior to Starliner undocking from ISS and returning to Earth. According to NASA, that review may come as soon as the end of next week — or August 2, 2024.

“I think we’re starting to close in on those final pieces of the flight rationale to make sure that we can come home safely,” said Steve Stich.

Below are in-depth comments given by Stich and Nappi.

Addressing Returning On SpaceX Crew Dragon

Steve Stich was asked what the backup plan was if Williams and Wilmore could not return on Starliner. “Obviously, the luxury in our program today, and we’ve never really had this option in other NASA programs, is we have two different systems that we’re flying,” Stich replied. “Obviously, the backup option is to use a different system. I would rather not go into all those details until we get to that time, if we ever get to that time on what we plan to do.

“The beauty of having Dragon and Starliner in two different diverse space transportation systems is we can kind of use those as backups someday. Starliner could be a backup to a Dragon mission, and we’ve looked at all kinds of different contingencies for that. You’ve seen the Russians send up an empty Soyuz, right, to return a crew when they had a coolant leak.”

“I think the beauty of what we have in commercial crew is two different systems, and we would employ those systems if we need to, but we really have our team focused on as we close in on this final flight rationale: returning, uh, Butch and Suni on Starliner,” said Stich.

When asked to clarify his remarks, Stich said, “Our prime option is to complete the mission. There is a lot of good reasons to complete this mission, and bring Butch and Suni home on Starliner. Starliner was designed as a spacecraft to have the crew in the cockpit. The crew is integral to the spacecraft.”

Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore prior to launching aboard Starliner.
Photo: NASA

He added, “There’s a lot of objectives for the flight: having Butch and Suni on board during the deorbit burn and during the entry. Understanding how they monitor the system, how they work with the seat suit interface for landing, getting suited up in the vehicle. And then there’s a whole process of landing and recovery team that we really want to demonstrate before we get into [the] Starliner-1 mission.”

That said, Stich did not specifically rule out using Crew Dragon as a rescue vehicle, but he did make it clear that the current plan is to use Starliner to return the astronauts to Earth after a Readiness Review is completed.

NASA’s Steve Stich’s Comments

“We don’t have a major announcement today relative to a return date,” NASA’s program manager for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program said today at the opening of the press conference. He added, “We’re making great progress, but we’re just not quite ready to do that.”

Steve Stich, NASA program manager for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program in today’s press conference.
Photo: from NASA livestream

Later, Stich added, “We’ll work to execute an agency review as soon as we’re ready to do that. That could be as early as late next week. We are following the data and we’ll schedule that review when we need to, and then after that, we’ll set the undock time.”

Parsing Stich’s comments, it is important to note that the agency review could be as soon as next week, but may be delayed further as mission managers and engineers review data from both the Crewed Flight Test Starliner in orbit — “Calypso” — and testing being conducted on the ground in New Mexico.

“I’ve said before, the key attributes of the flight rationale, really, are that we understand the helium leaks, we understand the stability of the leaks, and how we can manage those should they get bigger,” Stich said.

Stich also said that, “We have a criteria in place that we have established, a leak rate that will check before undock and verify that system is good to go.”

A test of Calypso’s thrusters will also be conducted this weekend, while the spacecraft remains docked to ISS. “The hot fire test this weekend will give us confidence in all the thrusters,” Stich said. “Then [we will have] the understanding coming out of White Sands relative to what that testing means and how it applies to the rest of the thruster system.”

The Boeing CST-100 Starliner spacecraft is seen after it landed in White Sands, New Mexico, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019. The landing completes an abbreviated Orbital Flight Test for the company that still meets several mission objectives for NASA’s Commercial Crew program. The Starliner spacecraft launched on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket at 6:36 a.m. Friday, Dec. 20 from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Essentially, it sounds like Boeing and NASA will compare ground tests from White Sands to the results they get from Calypso while it is in orbit.

Stich gave further detail. “Really, it’s about the key use of the thrusters for the deorbit burn; that’s the next time we use them. We know the thermal environment is less for the deorbit burn. We know the stressing cases on the thrusters are less.”

Stich concluded his opening remarks by saying “That’s really, I think, the final pieces of the flight rationale that we need to put together. The team is doing great. The joint Boeing and NASA team is doing well. They’re working side by side with each other every day.”

Boeing’s Mark Nappi’s Comments

Nappi is the vice president and program manager of Boeing’s Commercial Crew Program. He leads the development, flight test, certification and missions of the Crew Space Transportation (CST)-100 Starliner system.

Nappi opened his comments in today’s press conference by saying, “Last time we talked to you, we had 33 actions to complete in order to get to a place wherewe thought we had a good vehicle to come home and we could learn something about the root cause [of the thruster problems.] Of course, the long pull to those actions was all the testing at White Sands that Steve [Stich] talked about. At the time, we believed we had thrusters that were healthy, and we concluded we were good for emergency return.”

Boeing’s vice president and program manager of Boeing’s Commercial Crew Program in today’s press conference.
Photo: NASA, from their livestream.

Nappi then went into further detail. “Remember, we said we did not have root cause and know what it was going to take to fix it permanently. So, we said, let’s take the time, let’s figure this out. Let’s run this testing at White Sands. If there’s anything more we can do after that testing while we’re docked to ISS, let’s take advantage of that, and then we’ll come home.”

“I think the plan has played out really well. In addition, it’s given us additional confidence to undock and return, and we have a little bit more work to do, as Steve has outlined.”

Nappi Gives A Thorough Breakdown Of Recent Activities

The following is a breakdown of Starliner’s status and testing that Mark Nappi provided today. While it is lengthy, readers may find it worthwhile to read in order to understand what has been done and what the current status of the spacecraft is.

“First of all, let’s start with the helium system. We have a service module at White Sands that was exposed to propellant. And it’s been exposed for about three years. So it was a really good test case to go and do some leak checks on and then take that hardware apart.”

“We did those leak checks. We found leaks. Of cours it’s been exposed to NTO [nitrogen tetroxide] for quite a while. We took the hardware apart, and we found pretty good degradation of the seals, which indicated that they had been exposed to NTO and degraded. So that was a really, really good data point, both from the standpoint of finding out that it had degraded seals.”

“But also we could capture a leak rate, which could end up being our worst case kind of leak rate, because this hardware was exposed for so long. On the second part of the testing, of course, was the thruster testing. Steve outlined that testing, but it was very stressful testing of that thruster through ATP uphill and approach and docking, some increased temperature profiles, um, and some very stressful downhill runs.”

“So all of that was done with the thruster, very heavily instrumented, which gave us a lot of. Information. From that information, and, of course, from theinspections after the test, we’ve determined two things. One is that there’s some teflon from a seal where the nto enters the thruster, and that seal was eroded.”

“And when we looked downstream from that seal, we found that material was lodged in a downstream filter. That is where the NTO goes through. Obviously, that restricts flow of Nto and may be part of the cause of the degradation that we’ve seen in flight. The bigger finding was where the nto goes through a port, to where it gets to the injector inside the thruster, and there’s a poppet that opens and closes and allows that nto to go through at the end of that poppet.”

“Very small poppet. It’s similar to the small inflation valve that you have on a car tire or a bike tire. That poppet has a Teflon seal at the end of it through the heating and the natural vacuum that occurs with the thruster firing. That poppet seal was deformed and actually bulged out a little bit, and again, was an indication that it’s restricting the nto from going through the system.

“So, again, a really good finding. When we looked at the information, we looked at the data, it really does replicate well what we’re seeing in flight. So we think these findings are very significant and are likely the root cause. Obviously, knowing root cause is what gets us to permanent fixes.”

“So there’s very strong evidence, and we’re going to continue to take that hardware apart so that we can finally prove this. Today we’re performing the final hardware inspections, and we’re doing some flow analysis through that type of valve arrangement where we have Teflon in the seal or, excuse me, Teflon in the filter, and this bulging of the Teflon at the end of the poppet.

And we’d like to see if we can model this restriction of nto and recreate what we’re seeing in flight. With all these test results we determined that we could run one more set of tests while we’re docked, and it’s really icing on the cake for us.

So, Steve talked about the one more docked hot fire test that’s going to verify all the thrusters are acceptable at the acceptable performance levels. Again, we learned something from this flight. We didn’t know that other visiting vehicles do this before they leave. And so we’re probably going to make that part of our normal regime when we are doing long duration missions.”

“Also, we’re going to do the helium manifold leak checks again. That will give us some data points on how stable the leaks are and assure there’s no additional NTO degradation. Lastly we have a very valuable guidance, navigation and control integrated performance model that was incorporating failures to answer the question, what if we’re wrong on some of these?”

“So they ran over 300 cases. And of all those cases, the results were either green, that we could return home safely or were determined to be not credible, or they had operational controls that could be applied to make sure that we returned home safely. So what’s next?”

“We’re going to share the data and flight rationale with the mission management team. We have one more meeting tomorrow to do that. We’ll use the weekend if required. We’re going to perform the stocking tests that we’ve described and then of course, there’ll be more reviews.”

“We’ll bring the complete story to the agency for the undoc review sometime next week, like Steve has outlined and then we’ll be ready to execute the last part of the mission. The last several weeks have been really helpful to understand the helium and thruster anomalies and how to address these problems for future flights.”

“That’s been the real goal here is to be able to address future flights and to gain the confidence that we needed for this mission. Weneed to take the time to get the community all this information and get back to completing the CFT mission. Our mission was to get the crew to ISS.”

“That’s been completed. Our mission was to learn from a flight test. A lot of the learning that we’ve achieved so far really, in my opinion, could only be achieved through the flight test. And now it’s time to get on with returning the crew safely. And there’s that step left to go.”

If you are interested, you can watch the entire press conference here:

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Closeup of Falcon 9’s Merlin engines as the rocket lifts off. The static fire conducted last night was testing this part of the spacecraft.
Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville

SpaceX conducted a static-firing of the nine Merlin engines of a Falcon 9 booster first stage at SLC-40 last night as the company prepares to return to flight after a very rare in-flight failure on July 11.

Interestingly, it was not Falcon 9’s first stage that failed earlier this month, rather, it was in the second stage after the first stage had successfully completed its portion of the mission and had begun returning to land offshore. That landing was successful several minutes later.

For their part, SpaceX has not stated why they performed the static fire, a procedure that was a normal part of Falcon 9 missions until the last 12-18 months, when the company stopped performing the test. There are logical reasons to conduct a static fire — they could be proving in ground systems, or they could be returning to conducting the tests as an additional quality control test in advance of a high-stakes return to flight mission.

The return to flight missions seem to be close. While the FAA has not formally signed off on Falcon 9 returning to flight, SpaceX has prepositioned its drone ships out to see in positions that suggest imminent flights and landings. SpaceX led the Starlink 9-3 investigation and remediation efforts, with FAA oversight.

At the time of this writing, SpaceX has not announced a specific date and time for a target launch, though many of the online space launch scheduling sites are suggesting the dates are set:

While those sites are generally quite accurate, it remains to be seen if they are correct in this case. It is worth noting that of official word of the completion or acceptance of the Starlink 9-3 investigation results has been released, but at the same time, the FAA and SpaceX have been working closely to complete and close the investigation.

Falcon 9 in flight in 2024.
Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
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A Falcon 9 sitting on its launch pad in Jun 2024 at Space Launch Complex 40 in Cape Canaveral.
Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville.

Will Robinson-Smith of Spaceflight Now reported yesterday that SpaceX has petitioned the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to permit the resumption of its Falcon 9 rocket flights, despite an ongoing investigation into a recent mission anomaly. The request comes just days after a liquid oxygen lead led to malfunction during the Starlink 9-3 mission led to the grounding of Falcon 9.

On Thursday, a Starlink mission launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California experienced a significant anomaly. SpaceX’s Falcon 9’s second stage developed a liquid oxygen leak, causing the upper stage to malfunction and deploy its 20-satellite payload into an orbit too low for the Starlink units. The incident caused the Starlink satellites to reenter the Earth’s atmosphere and subsequently incinerate. The malfunction triggered a comprehensive safety investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requiring the temporary grounding of the rocket.

Starlink 9-3: an apparently abnormal amount of ice builds up on Falcon 9’s second stage.
Photo: SpaceX Livestream

As SpaceX’s aggressive 2024 launch schedule falls behind, SpaceX has formally requested that the FAA allow the continuation of uncrewed commercial Falcon 9 flights prior to the FAA completing their investigation. At this time it is not clear if that request is for Starlink only, or if the waiver would include commercial and national defense missions that the company has on its manifest.

The company argues that the anomaly experienced Thursday does not pose a threat to public safety. According to SpaceX, the issue was identified as a liquid oxygen leak that led to a buildup of ice on the upper stage, as observed during the launch. SpaceX has accrued a solid track record with the Falcon 9 booster, having experienced only a small handful of problems in over 350 flights.

FAA Reviewing The Request

In a statement, the FAA has confirmed that it is reviewing SpaceX’s request. “The FAA is reviewing the request and will be guided by data and safety at every step of the process,” the statement read.

SpaceX’s request, submitted on July 15, seeks a public safety determination from the FAA. This would allow SpaceX to proceed with Falcon 9 launches while the mishap investigation continues should the request be granted.

The FAA has reiterated its commitment to public safety during commercial space transportation operations.

“The FAA is responsible for and committed to protecting the public during commercial space transportation launch and reentry operations….the FAA will review the request, and if in agreement, authorize a return to flight operations while the mishap investigation remains open and provided the operator meets all relevant licensing requirements.”

— Federal Aviation Administration

It Appears The FAA May Approve The Request

While the FAA has stated that they are reviewing SpaceX’s request, they may have telegraphed their decision by issuing a pair of NOTAM warnings for an area around Cape Canaveral that indicates space launches are imminent: the first, TFR 4/3617, Friday from 01:33 AM EDT to 06:02 AM EDT, and the second, TFR 4/3624, from Saturday 01:11 AM EDT to 05:40 AM EDT the same day. Whether this is for one launch or two is not known, but many in space circles think it is for one launch from SLC-40 and the other from Pad LC-39A at KSC.

https://tfr.faa.gov/save_pages/detail_4_3617.html
https://tfr.faa.gov/save_pages/detail_4_3624.html

Pathways for SpaceX To Return To Flight

According to the FAA’s website, the FAA has two pathways to authorize a return to flight operations after a mishap. A return to flight operations of the vehicle-type involved in the mishap is ultimately based on public safety. The FAA must determine that any system, process, or procedure related to the mishap does not affect public safety or any other aspect of the operator’s license. This determination can be made in one of two ways.

  • FAA acceptance of final mishap investigation report: The operator-led mishap investigation final report must be completed, including the identification of any corrective actions. The FAA will review the report, and if accepted, the mishap investigation is closed. The corrective actions then must be implemented, and all relevant licensing requirements met before a return to flight operations. 
     
  • FAA public safety determination: The operator may request the FAA make a public safety determination based on information that the mishap did not involve safety-critical systems or otherwise jeopardize public safety. The FAA will review the request, and if in agreement, authorize a return to flight operations while the mishap investigation remains open and provided the operator meets all relevant licensing requirements.

SpaceX’s current situation falls under the second option, with the company arguing that the malfunction does not compromise safety-critical systems. The FAA’s decision on this matter will be crucial for SpaceX’s immediate future operations.

SpaceX is conducting their own investigation, and has detailed its preliminary findings in a statement on its website. The company noted that the liquid oxygen leak prevented the Merlin vacuum engine on the upper stage from completing its second burn. Although the stage managed to deploy the satellites, it did not successfully circularize its orbit, leaving the satellites in a low perigee orbit of 135 km, significantly below the expected altitude.

“At this level of drag, our maximum available thrust is unlikely to be enough to successfully raise the satellites,” SpaceX explained. “As such, the satellites will re-enter Earth’s atmosphere and fully demise. They do not pose a threat to other satellites in orbit or to public safety.”

If the FAA agrees with SpaceX’s assessment, the company could resume launching its Falcon 9 rockets. SpaceX has tentative plans for upcoming missions, including Starlink 10-4 and Starlink 10-9, from its Florida launchpads. These plans, however, hinge on the FAA’s approval.

In the wake of the anomaly, NASA has also weighed in on the situation. The space agency, which collaborates closely with SpaceX on various missions, issued a statement emphasizing its commitment to safety and transparency.

“Crew safety and mission assurance are top priorities for NASA. SpaceX has been forthcoming with information and is including NASA in the company’s ongoing anomaly investigation to understand the issue and path forward,” NASA stated on June 12. “NASA will provide updates on agency-related missions as necessary.”

As the investigation continues, the space community watches closely. SpaceX’s rapid advancement and ambitious schedule have always set it apart, but incidents like these underscore the inherent risks of spaceflight. The FAA’s forthcoming decision will not only impact SpaceX’s timeline but also influence broader industry standards for safety and operational resilience in the rapidly evolving domain of commercial space exploration.

While SpaceX remains optimistic about resuming launches, the final decision rests with the FAA.

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Note: this article was written by Mark Stone of Florida Media Now and initially appeared there. Charles Boyer of Talk of Titusville added the TFR/NOTAM information recently published by the FAA.

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A seemingly abnormal buildup of material from Falcon 9’s second stage was seen in the livestream of SpaceX’s Starlink 9-3 mission last night. The livestream ended before the actual failure of the spacecraft occurred.
Photo: SpaceX livestream

Last night in California, SpaceX launched another group of Starlink satellites from California and experienced a failure of the second stage when the mission got to the point of a second burn intended to circularize the orbit of the spacecraft.

Company founder Elon Musk stated on the X platform that, “Upper stage restart to raise perigee resulted in an engine RUD for reasons currently unknown. Team is reviewing data tonight to understand root cause.

Starlink satellites were deployed, but the perigee may be too low for them to raise orbit. Will know more in a few hours.”

Musk added that “We’re updating satellite software to run the ion thrusters at their equivalent of warp 9. Unlike a Star Trek episode, this will probably not work, but it’s worth a shot. The satellite thrusters need to raise orbit faster than atmospheric drag pulls them down or they burn up.”

As Musk states, Warp 9 is from Star Trek, and in the show, that meant that the ship was traveling as fast as its engines allowed. That was only used in emergency situations, and that’s effectively what the Starlink satellites are in: a race to raise their orbit above atmospheric drag before they lose too much velocity and drop out of orbit. Since then, no update has been provided by SpaceX or Musk.

Last night’s failure ended a streak of 284 consecutive 100% mission successes for the company. It should be noted, however, that the first stage booster performed nominally, that it landed on the drone ship ‘Of Course I Still Love You’ offshore safely as intended and that prior to its failure that the second stage did achieve orbit, albeit one that may not be useful for the payload.

SpaceX Statement (July 12, 2024)

SpaceX made the following statement on its website this afternoon:

“On July 11, 2024, SpaceX launched Falcon 9 with 20 Starlink satellites from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base. Falcon 9’s first stage performed nominally, carrying the second stage and Starlink satellites to orbit, separating from the second stage as expected, and returning to Earth for a successful droneship landing, representing SpaceX’s 329th recovery of an orbital class rocket to-date.

Falcon 9’s second stage performed its first burn nominally. However, a liquid oxygen leak developed on the second stage. After a planned relight of the upper stage engine to raise perigee – or the lowest point of orbit – the Merlin Vacuum engine experienced an anomaly and was unable to complete its second burn. Although the stage survived and still deployed the satellites, it did not successfully circularize its orbit. This left the satellites in an eccentric orbit with a very low perigee of 135 km, which is less than half the expected perigee altitude.

The team worked overnight to make contact with the satellites in order to send early burn commands, but the satellites were left in an enormously high-drag environment only 135 km above the Earth (each pass through perigee removed 5+ km of altitude from the orbit’s apogee, or the highest point in the satellite orbit). At this level of drag, our maximum available thrust is unlikely to be enough to successfully raise the satellites. As such, the satellites will re-enter Earth’s atmosphere and fully demise. They do not pose a threat to other satellites in orbit or to public safety.

We greatly appreciate the team’s effort to learn as much as possible from the satellites and attempt recovery.

This event is a reminder of how technically challenging spaceflight is. To date, we have completed 364 successful Falcon launches – safely carrying astronauts, customer payloads and thousands of Starlink satellites to orbit – making the Falcon family of rockets one of the most reliable in the world. SpaceX will perform a full investigation in coordination with the FAA, determine root cause, and make corrective actions to ensure the success of future missions. With a robust satellite and rocket production capability, and a high launch cadence, we’re positioned to rapidly recover and continue our pace as the world’s most active launch services provider.”

Launch Replay

Here is a replay of SpaceX’s livestream of the Starlink 9-3 launch from last night:

Investigation Ahead

Of course, SpaceX will investigate the failure and try to identify its root cause(s) so it can take corrective action to prevent reoccurrence. In a Root Cause Analysis, or RCA investigation, data from the flight will be examined, as well as the manufacturing and test records associated with that particular second stage. From that flight data, the company will ascertain what failed and when, and from that they can begin to narrow down how it happened. Those investigations are thorough and take some time to complete. How long that takes is anyone’s guess.

SpaceX’s last in-flight failure occurred in 2015, when another second-stage failure ended some 139 seconds into flight. The resulting investigation led to a 180-day gap in Falcon 9 flights. It should be noted, however, that at the time SpaceX had far less experience launching Falcon 9 — the failed CRS-7 mission was the company’s 19th Falcon 9 flight and the next flight, Orbcomm 2-2 was its 20th. Thursday’s launch was SpaceX’s 69th Falcon 9 flight this year and the 354th since the rocket’s debut in 2010. That is quite a lot of in-flight experience, and that experience may well aid the company in identifying what went wrong and how to remediate the issue quickly.

FAA Statement

NASA Spaceflight, a leading space news organization, queried the FAA about the failure, and the FAA responded by saying, “The FAA is assessing the operation and will issue an updated statement if it is determined an investigation is warranted.”

Later, that statement was updated:

“The FAA is aware an anomaly occurred during the SpaceX Starlink Group 9-3 mission that launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on July 11. The incident involved the failure of the upper stage rocket while it was in space. No public injuries or public property damage have been reported. The FAA is requiring an investigation.

An investigation is designed to further enhance public safety, determine the root cause of the event, and identify corrective actions to avoid it from happening again.

The FAA will be involved in every step of the investigation process and must approve SpaceX’s final report, including any corrective actions

A return to flight is based on the FAA determining that any system, process or procedure related to the mishap does not affect public safety. In addition, SpaceX may need to request and receive approval from the FAA to modify its license that incorporates any corrective actions and meet other licensing requirements.

The FAA responding to NASA Spaceflight, July 12, 2024

At this time, NASA, the US Space Force and NRO — three of SpaceX’s biggest governmental customers — have not made any public statement requiring their requirement of or participation in an investigation. Ostensibly, SpaceX will conduct the investigation working with the FAA and report the findings to those entities for their approval.

Launch Schedule Effects

With Falcon 9 now grounded by the FAA while an investigation is completed, missions such as Polaris Dawn, Crew 9, NG-21 and others are indefinitely delayed, as are any Starlink or customer launches currently on SpaceX’s manifest.

That said, the Starlink 10-4 mission scheduled for early Sunday morning from Space Launch Complex 40 is almost certainly delayed, pending a company announcement. Other missions later on the calendar are affected as well: GSAT-20, WorldView Legion 3 and 4, Arctic Satellite Broadband Mission (ASBM), Transporter 11 and others were manifested for the next 45 days from either Cape Canaveral, Kennedy Space Center or Vandenberg Space Force Base.

Regarding the upcoming private crewed Polaris Dawn mission that will be commanded by Jared Isaacman, Isaacman released this statement on X.com today:

“SpaceX has an incredible track record with Falcon9. I can say from personal experience they are very transparent when issues arise. I have no doubt they will arrive at a cause quickly and ensure the most cost-effective and reliable launch vehicle keeps delivering payload to orbit. As for Polaris Dawn, we will fly whenever SpaceX is ready and with complete confidence in the rocket, spaceship and operations.”

— Jared Isaacman, July 11, 2024

Polaris Dawn had been scheduled to fly NET July 31, but that mission is now delayed pending the mishap investigation and the implementation of remediations.

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Falcon 9 lifts off from Space Launch Complex 40 on July 8, 2024.
Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville

SpaceX weathered lightning in the area until skies cleared early this evening, allowing the company to launch the Turksat-6A mission aboard a Falcon 9. Originally scheduled for 5:20 PM EDT, liftoff was delayed several times until 7:30 PM when the afternoon’s storms were far away enough to allow the rocket to safely ascend towards orbit.

Around 8.5 minutes after liftoff, Booster B1076 touched down safely on the company’s drone ship ‘Just Read The Instructions’ to complete its fifteenth mission, while the second stage and payload continued to Earth orbit.

Shortly after 8 PM, SpaceX confirmed a successful deployment of the payload, marking yet another successful mission for the company and for Falcon 9: its 351st Falcon 9 launch, its 308th booster landing, and its 282nd flight of a previously flown booster.

Launch Replay

Payload

The payload for this mission was a domestically produced telecommunications satellite, Türksat 6A. Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğle stated that Türksat 6A was produced with a local production rate of nearly 90 percent, a first for the Türkish nation.

In May, he said, “We produced our Türksat 6A satellite locally and nationally. While producing this, we assigned Türksat’s engineers to the construction of TÜRKSAT 3A, 4A, 4B, 5A, 5B satellites, trained them and included them in the production programs.”

It is currently traveling under its own power to a geosynchronous orbit positioned at 42° East, where it will have an expected service lifetime of at least fifteen years once it reaches its operational location and is tested and commissioned.

Falcon 9 powers through clouds this evening over Florida skies
Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville

Türksat 6A will service Türksat’s normal customer base as well as adding four new countries with the new Türksat 6A. “Currently, with our satellites, we cover Europe, the Middle East, the Turkish Republics and a part of the Far East,” Uraloğle said. “We are already selling this service to the geographies I mentioned. There will be additional income by selling this communication service and exporting services to the new 4 countries.” he said.

Booster B1076.15

Booster B1076
Flight NumberMissionLaunch Date
1CRS-26November 26, 2022
2OneWeb 16January 10, 2023
3Starlink 6-1February 27, 2023
4Intelsat 40eApril 7, 2023
5Starlink 6-3May 19, 2023
6Starlink 6-6July 24. 2023
7Starlink 6-14September 9, 2023
8Starlink 6-21October 5, 2023
9O3b mPOWER 5/6November 12, 2023
10Ovzon-3January 3, 2024
11Starlink 6-40February 29, 2024
12Eutelsat 36DMarch 30, 2024
13Starlink 6-54April 28, 2024
14Starlink 6-64May 31, 2024
15Turksat-6AJuly 8, 2024
Booster B1076 record as of July 8, 2024

Next Launch

SpaceX is scheduled to launch another set of Starlink satellites early on Saturday morning from Space Launch Complex 40.

  • Date: NET July 13, 2024
  • Organization: SpaceX
  • Mission: Starlink Group 10-4
  • Rocket: Falcon 9
  • Launch Site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
  • Launch Window: 03:58 AM – 08:28 AM EDT
  • Payload: Starlink Mini v2 satellites

Keep in mind that launch dates and times change often. Launch attempts can be scrubbed anytime due to weather, technical reasons, or range conditions.

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Falcon 9 lifting off in January 2024
Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville

SpaceX is planning to launch a Falcon 9 carrying a Turkish telecommunications satellite later Monday afternoon from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, weather permitting. The launch window opens at 05:20 PM EDT and extends over four hours to 09:43 PM EDT Monday.

The launch will be SpaceX’s 71st launch of 2024, and its 34th launch from Space Launch Complex 40 this year. Overall, it will 382nd SpaceX launch all time.

At A Glance

  • Mission: Turksat 6A
  • Date: NET July 8, 2024
  • Launch Window: 05:20 PM EDT – 09:43 PM EDT*
  • Organization: SpaceX
  • Rocket: Falcon 9
  • Launch Site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
  • Payload: Communications satellite to geosynchronous orbit.
    * consult SpaceX for the specific target for T-0.

Payload

Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğlu of Türkiye
Photo: Türksat

The payload for this mission is a domestically produced telecommunications satellite, Türksat 6A. Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğle stated that the Türksat 6A communication satellite was produced with a local production rate of nearly 90 percent. In May, he said, “We produced our Türksat 6A satellite locally and nationally. While producing this, we assigned Türksat’s engineers to the construction of TÜRKSAT 3A, 4A, 4B, 5A, 5B satellites, trained them and included them in the production programs.”

It will be placed in a geosynchronous orbit positioned at 42° East with an expected service lifetime of at least fifteen years once it reaches its operational location and is tested and commissioned.

Türksat 6A will service Türksat’s normal customer base as well as adding four new countries with the new Türksat 6A. “Currently, with our satellites, we cover Europe, the Middle East, the Turkish Republics and a part of the Far East,” Uraloğle said. “We are already selling this service to the geographies I mentioned. There will be additional income by selling this communication service and exporting services to the new 4 countries.” he said.

Weather

According to the 45th Weather Squadron, chances are high for a weather violation on the launch range creating a delay. Their forecast calls for a 70% likelihood of a weather violation, leaving only a 30% chance of acceptable weather.
In their July 7th launch discussion, the 45th states, “For both Monday and Tuesday, [a frontal] ridge is expected to shift south of the spaceport, bringing weak southwesterly winds and coastal afternoon thunderstorms to the Cape. Some of these storms may produce 40 mph or greater winds. Convective activity should taper off after sunset, but steering winds are expected to be weak, possibly extending any weather violations that occur.”

Trajectory

Eastward. Falcon 9 will appear to be flying nearly straight out to see for spectators facing the Atlantic Ocean at launch time.

Landing

Landing is expected to be out at sea aboard one of SpaceX’s Autonomous Spaceport Drone Ships.

Online Viewing

SpaceCoastLaunchCalendar.com will have a livestream of the launch if you’re not able to watch the launch in person: Livestream

A live webcast of this mission will begin on SpaceX’s X account feed about five minutes prior to liftoff.  Watch live on X.

SpaceX’s official web page has links to their live coverage as well as up-to-date planned launch times. 

Spaceflight Now will begin its live launch feed one hour prior to liftoff.
SFN on Youtube.

For official updates regarding launch times, SpaceX.com is the best source of information. Starlink launch times change from time to time, and the company generally updates their website within minutes of the decision to change the launch time. This is very handy if none of the streaming options on YouTube have started their broadcasts.

Remember that there is a delay between a launch stream and the actual countdown clock. That is simply because of physics: it takes time for the signal to travel from the launch site, through the Internet, and back down to your phone, resulting in a five to fifteen-second delay.

Next Space Launch an app for iOS and Android phones, has a real-time countdown clock that is accurate to a second, give or take. The app is free. Search the App Store or Google Play.

Launch Viewing: In Person

This morning’s planned launch is from SLC-40, on the south side of the Eastern Range (KSC and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station combined.) The southern parks in Titusville on Washington Avenue and FL-528/A1A in Cape Canaveral are the best spots to watch liftoff directly.

Restaurants With Good Launch Views

Given the early hours of the launch window (7:30AM – 11:30AM EDT) these restaurants may not be open for launch viewing. Later in the day, all three may well be, so if you are interested, be sure to call ahead to make sure they’ll be ready to serve you.

  • The Space Bar ($$$) – atop the Courtyard Marriott near Kennedy Parkway
  • New York New York ($$) – on the Indian River with an outdoor seating area. Is family-friendly.
  • Shiloh’s ($$$) — located on the Indian River with an outdoor deck overlooking KSC/CCSFS

Indirect Views

There are several excellent viewing spots for SLC-40 launches that offer indirect views — meaning you won’t see the rocket until it clears obstructions such as trees, buildings, even a storm berm in one case.

  • Jetty Park, Port Canaveral
    • Fee required, much be purchased in advance: Port Canaveral Store
    • It’s very possible to see a cruise ship coming or going.
    • The pier especially has great views
  • Cocoa Beach
    • Parking fees (probably). Pay with your smartphone on the parking app. There are signs everywhere telling you how.
    • Further away, but still good views.
  • Northern Titusville Parks
    • Further away, but really nice views.

Playalinda Beach

Playalinda Beach out on the Cape Canaveral National Seashore will be open to spectators until 8 PM EDT, that is if KSC Security and the National Park Service allow viewers for the launch. It opens to visitors at 6 AM.

Call ahead to be sure.

Cape Canaveral National Seashore • Playalinda Beach

Phone: (386) 428-3384 x0

Current operating hours: 6:00 AM–8:00 PM

If you are going to Playalinda, and if it is open, remember these general tips. Some may not apply to this particular launch.

  • Get there at least two hours early, or better, earlier than that. Lines are long at the entry gate and they will only allow as many spectator vehicles as there are parking space available.
  • If the launch L-0 time is moved to after 8PM, you must leave Playalinda, as the National Park Service is very strict about closing hours.
  • Cape Canaveral National Seashore has a fee to get in and cash is not accepted. Debit and credit cards are okay, or if you have one of the National Park Service’s passes for the Seashore or the National Parks, that will work as well.
  • Cellphone service is spotty at best and often non-existent at Playalinda. Don’t count on your cellphone to keep up with the launch; you might get a signal, or you might not.
  • You are not allowed to view from the pullouts on Beach Road. Stanchions will block them. You’ll have to park and go to the beach.
  • Refreshments are not available. There are no stores at Cape Canaveral National Seashore, so you’ll need to bring drinks and food if you want any while you’re there.
  • Rangers will keep you back a certain distance from the launch area on the beach. Even if the beach is open, you’ll still be unable to go down to the fence that demarcates the normal security zone. There’s a line that spectators can’t go past somewhat north of the fence. That’s for safety and security.

Be prepared for potential changes or pushbacks in the launch schedule, and keep up by monitoring the live stream links mentioned above.

Keep up with launch news and other space events that affect the local area by subscribing to alerts when we publish a new article by entering your email at the link at the bottom of this page, or by visiting Space Talk here on the website. It’s free, and you can cancel at any time.

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Falcon 9 rises over a ghost boat on the Banana River on July 3, 2024
Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville

SpaceX successfully launched another group of Starlink satellites into orbit this morning from its Space Launch Complex 40 facility to open the second half of the year. Liftoff was at 4:55 AM EDT.

Around 8:20 minutes after liftoff, the first-stage booster used for the mission, tail number B1073, touched down safely on ASDS ‘A Shortfall of Gravitas’, stationed downrange in the Atlantic Ocean near the Carolinas. After landing, B1073 has now flown sixteen successful missions. ‘A Shortfall of Gravitas’ will now return to Port Canaveral, where the booster will be unloaded, transported to SpaceX’s Hangar X facility at Kennedy Space Center, and prepared for its next flight after inspection and refurbishment.

Launch Replay

Payload

According to SpaceX, tonight’s payload is “20 Starlink satellites, including 13 with Direct to Cell capabilities, to low-Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.”

Debbie Henninger Harris caught this photo of Falcon 9 ascending to orbit in Raleigh, NC this morning. The launch was visible for much of the SE coastal state.
Photo: Debbie Henninger Harris, shared by permission

Booster B1073.16 Record

Booster B1073May 12, 2024
FlightMissionDate
1Starlink 4-15May 14, 2022
2SES-22June 29, 2022
3Starlink 4-26August 10, 2022
4Starlink 4-35September 24, 2022
5HAKUTO-RDecember 11, 2022
6Amazonus NexusFebruary 7, 2023
7CRS-27March 15, 2023
8Starlink 6-2April 19, 2023
9Starlink 5-11June 12, 2023
10Starlink 6-12September 4, 2023
11Starlink 6-27November 8, 2023
12Starlink 6-37January 15, 2024
13Starlink 6-41March 4, 2024
14Bandwagon-1April 7, 2024
15Starlink 6-58May 12, 2024
16Starlink 8-9July 3, 2024
Booster B1073 flight record as of July 3, 2024
Falcon 9 lifts off and turns night into day for a moment—iPhone photo.

Next Launch

SpaceX will send a satellite built in Türkiye to geosynchronous orbit. Once commissioned, it will provide services to customers in Türkiye, Europe, the Northern coast of Africa, the Middle East, India, and Indonesia.

  • Date: NET July 7, 2024
  • Organization: SpaceX
  • Mission: Türksat 6A
  • Rocket: Falcon 9
  • Launch Site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
  • Launch Window: 5:20 PM EDT
  • Payload: Communications satellite

Keep in mind that launch dates and times change often. Launch attempts can be scrubbed anytime due to weather, technical reasons, or range conditions.

Read more