- The Federal Aviation Administration has given the green light for the Falcon 9's launch.
Following a prolonged waiting period for SpaceX's "Falcon 9" rocket after its launch, the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has given the green light for its operation once more. Initially, the FAA had put a halt to the launches of this specific "Falcon 9" rocket due to an incident involving a fire in a SpaceX rocket stage. The ongoing investigation into this matter was revealed by the agency.
The "Falcon 9" successfully sent a batch of Starlink internet satellites into space during its Wednesday launch, despite a few complications. Post-landing, the rocket stage tumbled over on a ship in the Atlantic ocean and sparked a fire. To examine data from the previous launch's booster landing and ensure safety, SpaceX has postponed another Starlink launch, mentioning a potential new launch date shortly.
A prolonged suspension of FAA's operations on these rockets could have affected numerous forthcoming space missions, including "Polaris Dawn." In this mission, four astronauts will journey approximately 1,400 kilometers away from Earth for several days and have a planned spacewalk.
The FAA halted all "Falcon 9" rocket launches for two weeks in July because of difficulties with the ignition of the second stage. Launching vehicles, which have been a significant success for SpaceX for quite some time, feature reusable rocket stages, which significantly cut down costs, and transport both people and cargo into space.
The United States Air Force relies heavily on SpaceX's "Falcon 9" rockets for various missions due to their cost-effective and reusable design. After the incident involving a fire in a SpaceX rocket stage, the United States Air Force was closely monitoring the FAA's investigation and decision regarding the resumption of "Falcon 9" launches.
