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SpaceX’s stalwart Falcon 9 rocket has been cleared for launch after experiencing a rare failure earlier this month, officials said Thursday.<\/p>\n
The rocket, a prolific launch vehicle that propels both satellites and astronauts into orbit, experienced an anomaly during a launch on July 11 in its second stage booster that meant it failed to deploy 20 Starlink satellites at a high enough altitude, and all burnt up on re-entry through Earth’s atmosphere.<\/p>\n
“During the first burn of Falcon 9’s second stage engine, a liquid oxygen leak developed within the insulation around the upper stage engine,” Elon Musk’s company said in a statement.<\/p>\n
“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.”<\/p>\n
After investigating the mishap, the Federal Aviation Administration said it had determined “no public safety issues were involved in the anomaly” and that the Falcon 9 vehicle “may return to flight operations while the overall investigation remains open.”<\/p>\n
The last time a Falcon 9 experienced a serious incident was in September 2016, when one blew up on the launchpad.<\/p>\n
And in June 2015, the second stage of a Falcon 9 disintegrated two minutes after lift-off, resulting in the loss of important equipment bound for the International Space Station.<\/p>\n
The new mishap notably came as the first crew of Boeing’s problem-plagued Starliner spaceship are stuck waiting for ground teams to give a green light for them to return from the ISS.<\/p>\n
With Falcon 9 cleared, the next scheduled resupply of the orbiting outpost in early August can now take place as planned, using a Northrop Grumman Cygnus cargo ship.<\/p>\n
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