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SpaceX suffered a rare failure of its Falcon 9 rocket in space on Thursday, the first major in-flight accident in hundreds of launches of this working vehicle.
The unmanned rocket was carrying 20 of SpaceX’s Starlink internet satellites, 13 of which had the company’s new “direct to cell” capabilities that allow connections from unmodified smartphones. SpaceX said in a post on X on Friday that the satellites were still deployed, but in the wrong orbit.
Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk said on social media platforms that the Falcon 9’s upper engine failed for unknown reasons when it attempted to re-ignite in orbit. Livestream video of the routine launch showed pieces of icy material forming on the rocket and breaking off into space.
The company said it had managed to establish contact with five satellites and was trying to lift them up using the spacecraft’s ion thruster engines before they were pulled down and burned up in the atmosphere. Musk joked that “unlike a Star Trek episode, it probably won’t work, but it’s worth a try.”
The last major flight failure of a Falcon 9 rocket occurred in 2015, when a vehicle carrying cargo to the International Space Station for NASA disintegrated while ascending into space. In 2016, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket also exploded during a refueling test on the launchpad before flight.
Despite these early incidents, SpaceX has maintained a nearly perfect track record of Falcon 9 rocket launches over the past decade, except for a few landings that missed their targets. The company claims 96 successful Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launches in 2023. This flight was SpaceX’s 70th launch of its Falcon family of rockets for 2024.
The company aims to launch 148 flights this year, and in late July, SpaceX intends to send a crew of four private astronauts — including billionaire Jared Isaacman — on a mission to conduct the first commercial spacewalk with SpaceX’s new spacesuits.
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Published: July 12, 2024, 08:07 PM IST
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