The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has temporarily grounded SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rockets following a mishap during the launch of Starlink satellites on Wednesday. The incident occurred when a Falcon 9 rocket failed to land upright on an unmanned vessel at sea and subsequently exploded.
The FAA’s decision to ground the rockets comes as SpaceX prepares for its highly anticipated Polaris Dawn mission, which aims to have four private astronauts attempt the first spacewalk by nonprofessional space travelers. SpaceX had hoped to launch Polaris Dawn this week, but adverse weather conditions have pushed back the schedule, and the next possible launch opportunity won’t be available until at least Friday, according to a company update.
A look at the FAA statement
“The FAA is aware of an anomaly that occurred during SpaceX’s Starlink Group 8-6 mission that launched from Cape Canaveral Space Station in Florida on August 28,” the FAA said in a news release. “The incident involved the failure of the Falcon 9 rocket booster to land on a drone at sea. No public injuries or damage to public property have been reported. The FAA is requesting an investigation.”
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NASA also commented on the situation, stating that it will “be included in the investigation to understand the issue and the path forward” and “provide updates on the agency’s missions, including potential schedule impacts, if any, as more information becomes available.”
The length of the investigation is not immediately known, but previous incidents suggest it could take a few weeks. To put that into context, SpaceX resumed missions about two weeks after an earlier Falcon 9 rocket engine failure was investigated.
As the investigation continues, the space community and space enthusiasts are closely watching the situation, eager to see how it might affect the planned Polaris Dawn mission and other future SpaceX launches.
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