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CAP CANAVERAL, Fla .– SpaceX has just launched the rocket that will transport its next crew of astronauts to the International Space Station this weekend.
The private spaceflight company carried out a static firing test of its Falcon 9 rocket on Wednesday, November 11 at pad 39A, here at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. The test is one of the last major steps before a launch scheduled for Saturday (November 14).
The pre-flight routine test started the long-awaited countdown to the flight of the company’s first operational mission of its Dragon crew capsule, called Crew-1. The spacecraft is bound for the International Space Station, carrying three NASA astronauts and a Japanese space flight with it.
The test, originally scheduled for Tuesday evening (November 10), has been postponed by 24 hours so SpaceX can test and replace a bleed valve in the second stage of the rocket.
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On Wednesday afternoon, the Falcon 9 rocket came to life, as smoke billowed from its engines during the pre-flight check test. The brief ignition, known as the static fire test, is a standard part of pre-launch procedures and one of the last important steps before take-off.
During the test, the Falcon 9 was held down on the cushion while its nine first-stage engines were briefly ignited. This allows crews to ensure that all systems are functioning properly and that the rocket is ready to fly. Shortly after the test, SpaceX tweeted that the static fire test was successful and that the company planned to launch on Saturday at 7:49 p.m. EST (0049 GMT Sunday, November 15).
The flight marks SpaceX’s 21st Mission of the Year and the first long-duration mission to be launched from Florida. The first stage of the rocket is expected to land at Cape Canaveral Air Force Base approximately 9 minutes after takeoff. If all goes according to plan, the crew capsule will only spend 8.5 hours tracking the space station before arriving at the orbital outpost early Sunday (November 15).
The Dragon capsule and its launcher are both new for this mission. Following the success of the Demo-2 mission, which launched two NASA astronauts to the space station in May for a two-month stay, NASA allowed SpaceX to reuse both the crew capsule and the rocket. for future missions. In fact, the Crew-2 mission set to launch next year will reuse the Dragon capsule from Demo-2 and the Booster from the Crew-1 mission.
True to the precedent set by the Demo-2 mission, the shiny exterior of the rocket’s first stage was adorned with NASA’s iconic worm logo.
With the Dragon capsule perched on top of the rocket, the duo exited the hangar to the launch pad of Complex 39A on Monday evening (November 9). Standing 78.1 meters (256.3 feet) tall, the pair were lifted overnight.
Related: SpaceX’s Crew Dragon space capsule explained (infographic)
Attached to the launch pad, crews loaded the rocket with super-cooled thrusters – kerosene and liquid oxygen – and then briefly fired the nine Merlin 1D engines on the first stage.
The engines fired briefly at 3:52 p.m. EST (20:52 GMT), generating 1.7 million pounds of thrust as the booster remained firmly on the ground. Engineers reviewed the data before deciding to proceed with the planned Falcon 9 launch attempt on Saturday evening.
“Falcon 9’s static firing is over – targeting Saturday, November 14 at 7:49 p.m. EST for the launch of Crew Dragon’s first operational mission to the space station with four astronauts on board,” SpaceX tweeted shortly after the test.
The company also said teams will continue to monitor weather conditions for take-off and along the flight path before launch.
Falcon 9 static fire completed – targeting Saturday, November 14 at 7:49 p.m. EST for the launch of Crew Dragon’s first operational mission to @space_station with four astronauts on board. Teams will continue to monitor weather conditions for take-off and along the flight pathNovember 11, 2020
The static fire test follows an exchange of equipment. Originally scheduled for October 31, Crew-1 flight was postponed for two weeks to allow SpaceX to replace one of the booster’s nine 1D Merlin engines in its first leg.
Last month, SpaceX attempted to launch an improved GPS satellite when it noticed an engine anomaly. The rocket’s on-board computer triggered an abandonment, and the mission was postponed indefinitely while crews worked to resolve the issue.
Further investigation revealed that leftover masking lacquer left over from the manufacturing process was preventing the engines from performing as intended. SpaceX changed two engines on this rocket and the GPS mission was able to take off on November 5.
SpaceX also took the time to examine two other boosters and determined that the same traces of lacquer were detected in the engines of two other first stages of the Falcon 9 – one on the rocket that will launch the Earth observation satellite. Sentinel-6 and one on the crew. -1 booster. SpaceX then swapped out the affected engines.
With a successful static fire test now under its belt, the rocket is ready to fly. After Saturday night’s launch, SpaceX plans to land its first-stage amplifier on one of its two massive drones, “Just Read the Instructions,” which is stationed in the Atlantic. If successful, this would mark the 65th recall recovery.
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