Daily Archives: February 4, 2021

Second high-altitude flight from private space facility on U.S./Mexico border

by: Sandra Sanchez

A SpaceX SN9 prototype rocket explodes upon landing at the South Texas facility near Boca Chica Beach, Texas, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2020. (Screenshot)

(EDITORS NOTE: This story has been updated with a statement from the FAA on the explosion.)

McALLEN, Texas (Border Report) After days of delays in trying to get FAA approval, SpaceX on Tuesday afternoon launched its SN9 prototype rocket from its South Texas facility but the rocket exploded upon landing near Boca Chica Beach, Texas.

The rocket flew for several minutes after launching 2:25 p.m. CT, and reached a high altitude of 10 kilometers into the South Texas sky, but had a failed landing after what is called a flip and burn in which the rocket tries to reorient to face upward.

Debris could be seen flying off the gleaming rocket as it tried to get its nose up for landing on the same launch pad it took off from at Boca Chica Beach, Texas. Seconds later, the rocket hit the pad and exploded into a fireball.

SpaceX also had a failed landing when it tried to launch its SN8 in December.

This was only the second high-altitude test flight conducted from this remote flight facility near the U.S./Mexico border.

SpaceX had wanted to launch the vehicle last Friday but the Federal Aviation Administration restricted activities at the launch site due to safety concerns. Those concerns were resolved late Monday, FAA officials told Border Report on Tuesday. The oversight agency also updated its launch licenses to include the SN9 prototype, a rocket that is being developed by the private spacecraft company in the hopes of one day carrying humans to Mars.

After the explosion on Tuesday, the FAA issued the following statement: The FAAs top priority in regulating commercial space transportation is ensuring that operations are safe, even if there is an anomaly. The FAA will oversee the investigation of todays landing mishap involving the SpaceX Starship SN9 prototype in Boca Chica, Texas. Although this was an uncrewed test flight, the investigation will identify the root cause of todays mishap and possible opportunities to further enhance safety as the program develops.

Sandra Sanchez can be reached at Ssanchez@borderreport.com.

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SpaceX test rocket crashes on landing pad in South Texas - Border Report

The Federal Aviation Administration is overseeing an investigation into the crash of SpaceX's prototype Starship SN9 rocket this week.

The rocket, a prototype of the ship Elon Musk's company hopes will one day carry people to Mars, was undergoing a high-altitude test flight Tuesday.

The shiny stainless-steel rocket reached an altitude of 6.2 miles as planned, but it failed to right itself as it descended and instead slammed into the ground and exploded.

It was the second crash of a Starship prototype in less than three months. The first crash on Dec. 11 also prompted an investigation by the FAA, according to The Verge.

(WATCH: SpaceX Launches a Record 143 Satellites on one Falcon 9 Rocket)

CNN was first to report the latest investigation by the FAA, which regulates and licenses commercial space operations in the U.S.

"The FAA's top priority in regulating commercial space transportation is ensuring that operations are safe, even if there is an anomaly," an agency spokesperson said in a statement to CNN. "The FAA will oversee the investigation of today's landing mishap involving the SpaceX Starship SN9 prototype in Boca Chica, Texas. Although this was an uncrewed test flight, the investigation will identify the root cause of today's mishap and possible opportunities to further enhance safety as the program develops."

Tuesday's launch had actually been delayed by the FAA. SpaceX wanted to launch the SN9 (Serial Number 9) prototype on Jan. 28.

According to The Verge, SpaceX violated the terms of its FAA test license with the launch of the SN8 prototype on Dec. 11.

Reuters reported that SpaceX sought a waiver to exceed the maximum public risk allowed by federal safety regulations. The FAA denied the request, Reuters reported, but SpaceX proceeded with the test, which ended when the rocket exploded while trying to land.

After the SN9 launch was delayed, Musk tweeted, Unlike its aircraft division, which is fine, the FAA space division has a fundamentally broken regulatory structure. Their rules are meant for a handful of expendable launches per year from a few government facilities. Under those rules, humanity will never get to Mars.

In a statement Tuesday, an FAA spokesperson said, "The FAA required SpaceX to conduct an investigation of the incident, including a comprehensive review of the company's safety culture, operational decision-making and process discipline. All testing that could affect public safety at the Boca Chica launch site was suspended until the investigation was completed and the FAA approved the company's corrective actions."

That cleared the way for Tuesday's launch of the SN9 prototype.

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FAA Investigates Explosive Landing of SpaceX's Mars Starship Prototype | The Weather Channel - Articles from The Weather Channel | weather.com - The...

A SpaceX prototype is seen on Nov. 30, 2020, ready to launch from the companys private facility near Boca Chica Beach, Texas. (Border Report File Photo/Sandra Sanchez)

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) SpaceXs second full test flight of its futuristic, bullet-shaped Starship ended in another fiery crash landing Tuesday.

Elon Musks company launched its latest Starship prototype from the southeastern tip of Texas, two months after the previous test ended in an equally explosive belly flop.

The full-scale stainless steel rocket reached its intended altitude of 6.2 miles (10 kilometers), slightly lower than the last one. Everything seemed to be going well as the 160-foot (50-meter) Starship flipped on its side and began its descent. But it did not manage to straighten itself back up in time for a landing and slammed into the ground.

Weve just got to work on that landing a little bit, said SpaceX launch commentator John Insprucker. Reminder this is a test flight.

The next Starship stood nearby at the launch site in Boca Chica, Texas, during Tuesdays test, which lasted 6 1/2 minutes.

Musk is developing Starship to carry people to Mars, perhaps in as little as several years. Its the upper stage of his intended moon- and Mars-ships, meant to launch atop a mega rocket called Super Heavy that is still being developed.

SpaceX tried to launch Starship last week, but failed to get the necessary approval from the Federal Aviation Administration, prompting a Twitter outburst from Musk.

SpaceX did not comply with safety regulations for the Dec. 9 flight, an FAA spokesperson said Tuesday, and needed to take corrective action before proceeding with launch operations. Tuesdays flight met all safety criteria, according to the FAA.

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SpaceXs 2nd Starship test flight ends with another kaboom - NEWS10 ABC

SPACEX: Well be back with another Starship in the near future

BOCA CHICA, TEXAS SpaceXs Starship SN9 rocket successfully lifted off Tuesday afternoon in Boca Chica, Texas. However, it wasnt a total success when the rocket crash landed after it tumbled out of the sky and became engulfed in flames before disintegrating on the surface.

We had again another great flight up to the 10-kilometer apogee, we demonstrated the ability to transition the engines to the landing propellant tanksweve just gotta work on that landing a little bit, SpaceX engineer John Insprucker said during a 15-minute live stream of the launch.

And a reminder, this is a test flight second time we have flown Starship in this configuration. Weve got a lot of data.

Initially, the SN9 was powered through ascent by three Raptor engines, each shutting down in sequence prior to the vehicle reaching apogee approximately 10 km in altitude. SN9 then performed a propellant transition to the internal header tanks, which hold landing propellant, before reorienting itself for reentry and a controlled aerodynamic descent.

The Starship prototype was suppose to descend under active aerodynamic control, accomplished by independent movement of two forward and two aft flaps on the vehicle.

SpaceX says all four flaps are actuated by an onboard flight computer to control Starships attitude during flight and enable precise landing at the intended location. SN9s Raptor engines would reignite as the vehicle attempts a landing flip maneuver immediately before touching down on the landing pad adjacent to the launch mount.

Well be back with another Starship in the near future, said Insprucker.

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WATCH: SpaceX Starship Test Flight in Texas Lifts Off with Success, Crash Lands on Pad - SpaceCoastDaily.com

Rocket engine startup Firehawk Aerospace is moving to Dallas to grow its 3-D printed rocket engine and fuel concept and join the space race as Texas becomes a growing hub in the commercial rocket world.

Firehawk is looking for space for its primary research facility in the Dallas-Fort Worth area after getting $1.2 million in investment funding from local startup fund Harlow Capital Management and CEO Colby Harlow.

The company is moving from Floridas Space Coast, where Kennedy Space Center has long been a magnet for commercial space research.

But that is quickly shifting as companies such as SpaceX, Blue Origin and Firefly are growing in the Lone Star State and the new generation of multibillionaire space magnates look for a future beyond the government confines of NASA.

Just this week, the focus of the space exploration world once again focused on Texas and Boca Chica beach as SpaceX tested its Starship concept with a test launch to 10 kilometers that ended in a spectacular explosion as the rocketship tried to land. And last month, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos rocket company, Blue Origin, declared its 14th rocket launch in West Texas a wholly successful mission that moves human flight one step closer.

We want to tap into everything thats going on here in Texas and really provide Dallas with a new kind of company, Firehawk Aerospace CEO Will Edwards said.

Firehawk uses 3-D printing technology to make a hybrid-style rocket engine, which it says is simpler, cheaper and more stable than traditional solid-fuel-style rockets. The company says its fuels can be loaded earlier onto rockets and can be stored for months or years at a time.

The kind of explosions that SpaceX has demonstrated during its research phases wouldnt be possible with a Firehawk-style rocket engine, Edwards said.

Firehawk is still in its early stages, but the company considers its technology to be promising. It has conducted tests with 200 pounds and 500 pounds of thrust and is working on an engine with 5,000 pounds of thrust. Thats small compared with the 1.2 million pounds of thrust used to launch the space shuttle or the 1.9 million pounds on SpaceXs Falcon 9 rocket. But Firehawk says the technology can be easily scaled up.

Weve been able to eliminate some of the historical shortcomings of hybrid rockets, company founder and chief scientist Ron Jones said. Our fuel is much denser than liquid fuels and our engines are less expensive to develop.

The engines could also have potential military applications. Thats another reason North Texas is an attractive landing spot for Firehawk with Lockheed Martin operating a major rocket and missile technology and manufacturing center in Grand Prairie and Raytheon Technologies space and airborne systems business based in McKinney.

We have some prospective clients and they vary between defense-type operations and commercial space flight, Jones said. What weve discovered is that they are not in Florida.

Florida does have a robust space industry, but companies such as SpaceX and Blue Origin primarily have manufacturing facilities there to keep their big rockets close to the launch center at Kennedy Space Center. SpaceX is headquartered near Los Angeles International Airport in Hawthorne, Calif., and Blue Origins base is in Kent, Wash., near Seattle.

Of course, space rocket companies come in all shapes and sizes. SpaceXs Falcon 9 rockets are among the biggest ever developed, but Firefly, which is based outside of Austin in Cedar Park, is developing rockets for small- and medium-size payloads. Its larger engines have about 40,000 pounds of thrust and are combined to achieve the kind of power needed to get into space.

Firehawks rockets could be put into use on smaller engines in as little as 15 months, Edwards said.

One big key factor, Jones said, is that the rockets and the printing technology can be easily modified, allowing rockets to be designed and built in just a few months for custom applications.

Firehawk is working on moving operations to Dallas and looking at opening another facility in Oklahoma, hoping to take advantage of that states aerospace manufacturing capabilities.

The company plans on doing research, design and manufacturing of rockets.

We intend to draw aerospace engineering graduates, so we think that Dallas is one of the best places to locate, Edwards said.

The company is considering spaces in the Plano-Richardson area, he said. Its in the process of moving its small research team from Florida and hiring about 20 more researchers and developers in North Texas.

Harlow, who runs Harlow Capital Management, said his firm put the $1.2 million into Firehawk because the company demonstrated its product has high growth potential.

Space has been very popular in the last couple of years with a lot of big name investors, from Elon Musk to Jeff Bezos, Harlow said. Because the engine technology can be so uniformly shared across the industry, it can be modified to work with any company.

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Firehawk Aerospace wants to 3-D print rocket engines and is moving to Dallas to join the space race - The Dallas Morning News