For the first time since 2016, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket experienced a catastrophic failure after a liquid oxygen leak developed on the spacecraft’s second stage – an incident that will delay the company’s launches until investigations into the mishap are completed.
The Falcon 9 launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Thursday night and was on a mission to deliver 20 Starlink satellites into orbit when the problem occurred.
“Upper stage restart to raise perigee resulted in an engine RUD [rapid unscheduled disassembly] for reasons currently unknown,” SpaceX CEO Elon Musk posted on the social platform X. “Team is reviewing data tonight [Thursday] to understand root cause.”
The Federal Aviation Administration said Friday it will investigate the accident and SpaceX will need its approval before resuming rocket launches.
“A return to flight is based on the FAA determining that any system, process or procedure related to the mishap does not affect public safety,” the agency said in a statement to NASA Spaceflight. “In addition, SpaceX may need to request and receive approval from the FAA to modify its license that incorporates any corrective actions and meet all other licensing requirements.”
SpaceX said the Falcon 9’s first stage “performed nominally, carrying the second stage and Starlink satellites to orbit” and then separated from the second stage as expected. The first stage returned to Earth and landed successfully on a droneship.
“Falcon 9’s second stage performed its first burn nominally, however a liquid oxygen leak developed on the second stage,” the statement said. “After a planned relight of the upper stage engine to raise perigee – or the lowest point of orbit – the Merlin Vacuum engine experienced an anomaly and was unable to complete its second burn.”
The first in-flight failure for SpaceX's Falcon rocket family since June 2015, a streak of 344 consecutive successful launches until tonight.
A lot of unusual ice was observed on the Falcon 9's upper stage during its first burn tonight, some of it falling into the engine plume. https://t.co/1vc3P9EZjj pic.twitter.com/fHO73MYLms
— Stephen Clark (@StephenClark1) July 12, 2024
While the Starlink satellites aboard the Falcon 9 were deployed, their orbits were too low. SpaceX said it tried unsuccessfully to fix that problem.
“The satellites were left in an enormously high-drag environment only 135 km above the Earth,” the company said.
The satellites are expected to re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere and burn up. “They do not pose a threat to other satellites in orbit or to public safety,” SpaceX said.
The company pledged to work with the FAA to investigate the Falcon 9 accident “to determine root cause and make corrective actions to ensure the success of future missions.”
The FAA, meanwhile, asserted that it “will be involved in every step of the investigation process and must approve SpaceX’s final report, including any corrective actions.”
UPDATE: The @FAANews is requiring an investigation into Starlink Group 9-3. The FAA needs to determine public safety before Falcon 9 can return to flight.
See the statement to @NASASpaceflight down below: pic.twitter.com/qS8XGORIAy
— Adrian Beil (@BCCarCounters) July 12, 2024
The SpaceX and FAA investigations will slow the rapid pace of Falcon 9 launches — which this year have included 47 from Cape Canaveral with two missions carrying astronauts onboard.
Upcoming SpaceX launches that could be grounded until the investigations are complete include a Falcon 9 Starlink launch that was scheduled for Sunday, the private Polaris Dawn mission with four humans aboard including entrepreneur Jared Isaacman that was set for the end of this month, and NASA’s Crew 9 mission to carry four astronauts to the International Space Station that was planned for mid-August.
Thursday night’s accident was the first involving a Falcon 9 rocket since 2016, when one exploded on the launch pad during the loading of propellants for an engine firing test. The last launch failure occurred in 2015 during a space station cargo run.
Between the 2016 explosion, which destroyed an Israeli satellite, and the malfunction on Thursday, SpaceX had enjoyed a streak of more than 300 successful Falcon 9 missions.
Kenneth Chang of the New York Times contributed to this report.
