For the first time since 2016, SpaceX is unable to launch its workhorse launch vehicle, the Falcon 9 rocket. During the Starlink 9-3 mission, which launched on July 11, 2024, from Vandenberg Space Force Base, the rocket's upper stage suffered a liquid oxygen leak. That prevented a key second burn of the Merlin Vacuum engine, causing the company to lose all 20 Starlink satellites due to deployment at a low altitude.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is requiring an investigation before the rocket is allowed to fly again. With the Crew-9 and Polaris Dawn astronaut missions previously scheduled to launch in August, NASA and other customers are closely watching the progress of the mishap investigation and when SpaceX will be approved to launch the Falcon 9 once again.
Spaceflight Now Reporter Will Robinson-Smith spoke astrophysicist and expert orbital tracker Johnathan McDowell about Falcon 9's issue and what the near term future for SpaceX may hold.
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