On the morning of July 12, SpaceX launched another Falcon 9 rocket. It ended with an accident at the second stage. Thus, the company broke its record-breaking accident-free streak, which had been going on since 2015.
Initially, the flight took place as normal. The first stage of the Falcon 9 completed its section, after which it separated from the rocket and successfully landed on a barge in the Pacific Ocean. The second stage with 20 Starlink satellites entered an intermediate orbit with a perigee altitude of 138 km and an apogee altitude of 295 km.
At the next stage of the flight, the Falcon 9 engine was to be re-engaged, which was necessary to round off the orbit. This is where the accident occurred. Live streaming footage showed a fuel leak and frost formation on the surface of the stage.
Later, SpaceX confirmed the failure of the second stage engine. As for the payload, all 20 Starlink satellites separated from the stage. Currently, SpaceX specialists are trying to save them by raising the orbit altitude using the spacecraft’s own engines. However, due to the very low perigee, they may not have enough time to do so. It is reported that so far, the company’s specialists have managed to establish communication with five satellites.
As for the second stage of the Falcon 9, it will soon enter the Earth’s atmosphere. Since SpaceX can no longer control it, the exact location of the crash is still unknown.
This failure interrupted SpaceX’s record-breaking accident-free streak, which had lasted since 2015, when a Falcon 9 with a Dragon supply ship was lost. Since then, the company has made 334 successful Falcon 9 launches in a row, which is an unprecedented series in the history of world astronautics.
Based on the materials of Spacenews
