Originally published January 20 2006
SpaceX rocket grounded by faulty pressure valve
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
The Falcon 1 rocket became damaged during a launch attempt due to a vacuum created by a faulty valve. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk noted the root of the failed launch was the valve, not the structural design.
The inaugural Falcon 1 rocket suffered structural damage during a launch attempt Monday when its first stage fuel tank was sucked inward from the vacuum created by a faulty pressure valve, technicians' initial investigation has revealed.
The setback came during the second countdown for this debut launch for Space Exploration Technologies.
The initial launch try November 26 was thwarted by what the company described as an incorrectly set vent valve that allowed liquid oxygen to escape from a ground storage tank.
Monday's shot at launching the 70-foot rocket to place an Air Force Academy cadet-built space plasma probe into orbit was targeting a 2 p.m.
But strong winds ripping across Omelek Island, a small isle in the Kwajalein Atoll of the Central Pacific, forced countdown clocks to stop at T-minus 15 minutes.
SpaceX reported winds upwards of 28 knots, violating the launch time limit of 24 knots.
"Due to high winds, we placed the countdown on hold and began draining the fuel tank," SpaceX CEO Elon Musk wrote in a candid status report issued late Monday.
It isn't clear whether the damage can be repaired at the remote launch site, about 5,000 miles from the U.S. mainland, or if the first stage must be replaced completely.
SpaceX officials told reporters last month that the second Falcon rocket was nearing completion in the company's Los Angeles manufacturing factory, and the third was being constructed.
The Falcon 1 booster is SpaceX's first rocket -- one capable of hauling small payloads into space.
SpaceX has a mixture of government and commercial orders for a half-dozen Falcon 1 missions, two Falcon 9 vehicles and a $100 million launch services deal with the Air Force.
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