SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket has successfully passed a critical static fire test, paving the way for its next mission, Crew-11, scheduled for launch this Thursday, July 31.
On July 28, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, the nine Merlin engines of the Falcon 9 roared to life for approximately 10 seconds.
The test was conducted while the rocket was firmly held in place with the hold-down clamps at Launch Complex 39A, and initial assessments indicate that the test was successful, pending a detailed review from SpaceX and NASA.
The static fire was crucial for verifying the health and operational capability of the rocket, which will transport four individuals to the International Space Station.
The Crew-11 mission includes three astronauts and one cosmonaut who will begin a long-duration stay onboard the ISS.
This test followed a previous attempt on July 27, which was aborted due to an indicator issue related to the transporter erector’s cradle arm position.
NASA noted in a statement that after an error caused the countdown to auto-abort at T-57 seconds, teams would conduct another static fire test the following day.
The agency reported, “The arm functioned correctly, and teams are reviewing data.
Falcon 9 and Dragon remain healthy on the pad ahead of Thursday, July 31’s targeted launch.”
Monday’s aborted test came shortly after the completion of a dry dress rehearsal where the astronauts boarded the Dragon spacecraft while it was un-fueled.
For the Crew-11 mission, SpaceX is utilizing Falcon 9 first stage booster serial number B1094, which marks its third flight.
Previously, this booster successfully launched Starlink 12-10 on April 29 and Axiom Mission 4 on June 25.
The B1094 booster has been involved in prelaunch campaigns that experienced anomalies.
Before the Ax-4 mission, it had a noted liquid oxygen leak that emerged during its static fire test.
This leak was attributed to an issue that occurred as the booster landed on a droneship, which was part of the Starlink 10-12 mission in late April.
To rectify the situation prior to the private astronaut mission, SpaceX’s William Gerstenmaier stated that the leak was being resolved at the launch pad.
He explained that a nitrogen purge was installed to mitigate the effect of the leak, along with addressing a thrust vector control problem that arose simultaneously.
On Sunday, the fully integrated Falcon 9 rocket was rolled out of the hangar at LC-39A just before midnight.
After positioning the rocket at the launch pad by 10 a.m. EDT, the crew access arm moved into place alongside the Crew Dragon Endeavour.
Mission commander Zena Cardman, alongside three crew mates, arrived at Kennedy Space Center on Saturday afternoon during their standard pre-launch quarantine period.
This period is customary for missions to the ISS.
Cardman and Oleg Platonov, a Roscosmos cosmonaut and one of two mission specialists, will be making their first flight to space.
Returning astronaut Mike Fincke, who serves as the pilot, is set to embark on his fourth journey to space.
Additionally, Kimiya Yui from the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) will make his second trip to the ISS.
The crew is planned to live and work on the station for a minimum of six months.
NASA and its international partners are also contemplating extending the mission to eight months to synchronize with changing timelines from Russia regarding its Soyuz missions.
A finalized decision on the mission’s length is expected about a month after Crew-11 successfully docks with the ISS.
image source from：spaceflightnow
