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One week after its initial launch goal, SpaceX launch engineers and technicians appear to have performed an additional suite of pre-flight checks that caused an unusually long delay from November 19 to 28.
As a kind of happy accident, the mission – a Carpool Spaceflight Industries carrying about 64 satellites – will not only be the first time SpaceX will launch a Falcon 9 booster three times, but this will also be the first time SpaceX will launch the same Falcon 9 reminder of the company's three orbital launch facilities.
Abandonment of the Spaceflight SSO-A: SmallSat Express launch attempt to conduct additional pre-flight inspections. Once completed, we will confirm a new launch date.
– SpaceX (@SpaceX) November 17, 2018
Probably a matter of caution over the opportunity, this extra time was used to ensure that the Falcon 9 B1046 mission's double flight recall is as ready as possible for its third launch, a subtle but absolutely essential milestone for the reuse of Falcon 9. More importantly, from an operational point of view, this is something that the company simply did not attempt to do, that is, if its concept is similar to the many booster reuses that SpaceX engineers and technicians have already done, every aspect of the B1046 renovation and the preparation of a new launch is a new territory for everyone.
In this sense, even the most minor observations and procedural developments are probably recorded with extreme care, paving the way for the systematic renovation of Bloc 5 boosters with more than two launches on their manifesto. Similar to the way auto mechanics know how to look and for different things depending on the age of the car and the time elapsed since its last maintenance, reusable rockets will likely require an even more exotic and unintuitive approach to diagnostics. multi-flight maintenance and repair. . It is hardly surprising that SpaceX has chosen to delay SSO-A by a few days to ensure that the rocket is ready to safely place its payload in orbit.
Vandenberg's SLC-4 Air Base looked great yesterday, November 26, from the orbit of # DEIMOS2! Good luck @SpaceX for the launch of tomorrow! ? #KazSTSAT # Falcon9 pic.twitter.com/q2NmKv3k0c
– Deimos Imaging (@deimosimaging) November 27, 2018
Hierarchical commands
In addition to the extreme importance of its third launch, the Falcon 9 B1046 will be subject to another rather unique situation. About 100 kilometers northeast of SpaceX's SLC-4 launch complex, a ULA Delta IV Heavy rocket is badembled and ready to place the National Reconnaissance Office's NROL-71 rated satellite into a high energy Earth orbit. If the extremely expensive launcher (about $ 350 to $ 400 million) on which it is placed is a sign, NROL-71 is a gigantic satellite that costs the NRO $ 500 to $ 2 billion to design, acquire and prepare for launch .
In other words, the huge risk capital probably caused a slight shift between Falcon 9 / SpaceX and Delta Heavy / ULA / NRO. Under normal circumstances, the Falcon 9 B1046 could undoubtedly perform RTLS (Return-To-Launch-Site) recovery, returning the recall to SLC-4 for a landing at LZ-4.
Instead, probably prevented from landing at LZ-4 due to the low chance that Falcon 9 could impact on or around the ULA launch pad in an off-name situation, SpaceX decided to place his drone aboard a ship within 30 miles (50 km) km) off the Vandenberg Air Base. In this strange and unused landing mode, Falcon 9 will perform some sort of RTLS Lite, returning in the direction of the launch site, but without going far enough to reach it.
In doing so, the B1046 will become – the first finger of the Falcon 9 to land on both SpaceX drones and take off from the company's three orbital facilities, the LC-40 (Cape Canaveral Air Force), LC-39A (Kennedy Center space) and SLC-4 (Vandenberg Air Base).
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