SpaceX aims to resume launches of its Falcon 9 rocket soon, and the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement to Spaceflight Now that the company is seeking a public safety determination.
The request was submitted to the FAA on July 15, according to officials. If approved, it would allow SpaceX to resume launches of its Falcon 9 rockets while the accident investigation into the Starlink 9-3 anomaly continues.
“The FAA is reviewing the request and will respond based on data and safety at each stage of the process,” the FAA said in a statement.
After launching from Vandenberg Space Center on July 11, the Falcon 9’s second stage suffered a liquid oxygen leak, preventing it from circularizing its orbit before releasing the 20 Starlink satellites.
The request was submitted to the FAA on July 15, according to officials. If approved, it would allow SpaceX to resume launches of its Falcon 9 rockets while the accident investigation into the Starlink 9-3 anomaly continues.
“The FAA has a responsibility and accountability to protect the public during commercial space transportation launch and reentry operations,” the agency said in a statement. “The FAA is reviewing the request and will act based on data and safety at every stage of the process.”
After launching from Vandenberg Space Center on July 11, the Falcon 9’s second stage suffered a liquid oxygen leak, preventing it from circularizing its orbit before releasing the 20 Starlink satellites.
The FAA has two ways to return a rocket to flight operations after an accident. The first is by approving a launch operator-initiated Final Accident Investigation Report, which includes an “Identification of Corrective Actions.” These actions must be implemented and must meet all relevant licensing requirements.
The other option would be a public safety determination, which the FAA said is available if “the incident does not involve a safety-critical system and does not pose a threat to public safety.”
“The FAA will review the request and, if approved, will authorize the aircraft to resume flying, provided that the accident investigation is ongoing and the operator complies with all relevant licensing requirements,” the FAA wrote on its website.
Following the Starlink 9-3 anomaly, SpaceX explained its preliminary findings on its website, noting that a liquid oxygen leak had prevented the upper stage’s Merlin vacuum engine from completing its second burn.
“The stage survived and deployed the satellite but was unable to return it to a circular orbit, but did self-deactivate, as is typically done at the end of each mission,” SpaceX wrote on July 12. “This placed the satellite in an eccentric orbit with a very low perigee altitude of 135 kilometers, less than half the expected perigee altitude.”
“With this level of drag, even maximum thrust would likely not be sufficient to successfully launch the satellite,” SpaceX added. “As a result, the satellite will re-enter the atmosphere and be completely destroyed, without posing a threat to other satellites in orbit or to public safety.”
If the FAA agrees with SpaceX’s decision, the Falcon 9 could resume launches. The company plans to launch both the Starlink 10-4 and Starlink 10-9 missions from two launch pads in Florida later this week, pending FAA approval, of course.
Still, SpaceX may have to wait until the investigation is complete before resuming launches of customer and government missions, such as flying Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus spacecraft and Crew 9 astronauts.
In response to the anomaly, NASA released a statement saying, “As part of NASA’s fleet tracking, we are receiving information from SpaceX regarding all matters of interest regarding the Falcon 9 rocket.”
“The safety of the crew and assurance of the mission are NASA’s top priority. SpaceX is continuing to provide information and is involving NASA in the ongoing anomaly investigation to understand the issue and next steps,” NASA said in a statement on June 12. “NASA will provide updates on the mission, including any impacts to the schedule, as more information becomes available.”
Spaceflight Now has reached out to NASA to ask whether the accident investigation, led by SpaceX and involving the FAA, must be completed before the agency can resume missions using the Falcon 9 rocket, and this story will be updated when a response is received.
