https://www.wired.com/story/spacex-first...-in-ocean/
EXCERPT: . . . SpaceX launched its 20th rocket of the year (CRS-16 mission) just two days after lofting a record 64 satellites into orbit. On this flight, a brand-new Falcon 9 hoisted a Dragon spacecraft into orbit, bound for the International Space Station. But unlike Monday’s textbook touchdown, today’s landing didn’t quite go as planned.
The Falcon’s first stage, the largest and most expensive portion of the rocket, was expected to navigate itself back to land after launching the Dragon spacecraft. But instead of gently touching down in the middle of SpaceX’s designated landing pad, the booster made an unscheduled plop into the Atlantic Ocean, just off the Florida coast. Video footage shared shortly after the incident shows the booster spinning out of control as it headed towards land.
But what caused the the anomaly? SpaceX officials will need to examine the booster to find out, but [...] SpaceX founder Elon Musk tweeted soon after the rocket landed. "Appears to be undamaged & is transmitting data. Recovery ship dispatched."
Musk indicated that it’s possible that SpaceX may be able to use the booster after fishing it from the ocean, tweeting that it could be used for an internal SpaceX mission. [...] But others at SpaceX are more circumspect [...saying...] it’s too early to tell if the booster is salvageable. [...] Today’s mishap marks the first time that the Falcon has failed to stick a landing on solid ground since SpaceX began recovering boosters. But it’s far from a failure. The incident instead illustrates how the rocket is designed to save itself in case something does go wrong....
MORE: https://www.wired.com/story/spacex-first...-in-ocean/
VIDEO (of CRS 16 launch): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=567BTc0XzEs
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EXCERPT: . . . SpaceX launched its 20th rocket of the year (CRS-16 mission) just two days after lofting a record 64 satellites into orbit. On this flight, a brand-new Falcon 9 hoisted a Dragon spacecraft into orbit, bound for the International Space Station. But unlike Monday’s textbook touchdown, today’s landing didn’t quite go as planned.
The Falcon’s first stage, the largest and most expensive portion of the rocket, was expected to navigate itself back to land after launching the Dragon spacecraft. But instead of gently touching down in the middle of SpaceX’s designated landing pad, the booster made an unscheduled plop into the Atlantic Ocean, just off the Florida coast. Video footage shared shortly after the incident shows the booster spinning out of control as it headed towards land.
But what caused the the anomaly? SpaceX officials will need to examine the booster to find out, but [...] SpaceX founder Elon Musk tweeted soon after the rocket landed. "Appears to be undamaged & is transmitting data. Recovery ship dispatched."
Musk indicated that it’s possible that SpaceX may be able to use the booster after fishing it from the ocean, tweeting that it could be used for an internal SpaceX mission. [...] But others at SpaceX are more circumspect [...saying...] it’s too early to tell if the booster is salvageable. [...] Today’s mishap marks the first time that the Falcon has failed to stick a landing on solid ground since SpaceX began recovering boosters. But it’s far from a failure. The incident instead illustrates how the rocket is designed to save itself in case something does go wrong....
MORE: https://www.wired.com/story/spacex-first...-in-ocean/
VIDEO (of CRS 16 launch): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=567BTc0XzEs
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