For SpaceX, getting the rocket booster upright on the droneship and landing it in the ocean turned out to be a simple task. It’s difficult to get it back to land.
SpaceX has reported the loss of its first-stage Falcon 9 booster, which flew a record 19 times for the company, including the historic mission that launched the company’s first crew to the International Space Station.
Booster 1058 completed its final flight from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday, and as always, the 150-foot-tall booster landed safely on a waiting drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean.
However, on the way back to base, the booster tipped over due to abnormal weather, and part of it fell into the sea.
“During transit back to port early this morning, strong winds and waves caused the booster to topple over on the droneship.” SpaceX description The social media post added that the new Falcon 9 booster has reinforced landing legs designed to help it stay upright in difficult conditions.
The Falcon fleet’s life-leading rocket completed its 19th and final launch and landing on Dec. 23. With just this one reusable rocket booster, it took him about three and a half years to launch two astronauts and her over 860 satellites (totaling over 260 tons) into orbit. . pic.twitter.com/q1ANdGCpEg
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) December 26, 2023
In a separate post, SpaceX executive Kiko Donchev said: Said “It was very disappointing and sad to lose Booster 1058.”
He explained that falls can occur “when certain landing conditions place an uneven load on the legs,” and that strong winds or rough seas can “cause the booster to wobble or slip.” added.
Donchev added that despite the setbacks, “we will make lemonade out of lemons and learn as much as we can from the historic 1058 in our quest for aircraft-like operations.”
This particular booster first flew in May 2020, sending NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken to the space station on a historic flight, coinciding with SpaceX’s first crew onboard It was the first launch of astronauts from U.S. soil since the end of the war. 2011 Shuttle Program.
Last week’s final flight involved the deployment of 23 Starlink satellites for SpaceX’s internet service from space.
As SpaceX continues to increase its launch frequency, it shouldn’t be long before other Falcon 9 boosters set new flight records, with the two boosters having flown 17 flights each to date. Two other aircraft have logged 15 flights each.
Sending boosters on multiple flights is key to SpaceX’s success, and the system will reduce the cost of orbital missions, thereby opening up access to space to more companies and organizations.
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