The first Chinese on the Moon in ten years?

CLEP - China Lunar Exploration Program logo.

April 25, 2019

Beijing aims to build a scientific research station in the regions of the South Pole of the Moon in about ten years.

Taikonauts on the Moon in 2029? (Photo-montage, illustation) Image Credits: NASA/Apollo 11

The announcement comes as China has achieved in January a world first: the moon landing of a probe on the far side of the moon.

China will send a first manned mission to the moon "in a decade," said China's top space program chief, while the United States aims to return to lunar soil by 2024.

"China aims to build a scientific research station in the regions of the South Pole of the Moon and to carry out manned lunar missions in a decade," said the director of the National Administration of Space, Zhang Kejian, quoted by the news agency China News.

Beijing has for many years evoked an inhabited mission on the Moon but no precise date has ever been provided, experts usually rely on a date after 2025.

After a successful lunar landing

Mr. Zhang's announcement comes as the country has achieved a world premiere at the start of the year: the moon landing of a probe on the far side of the moon. The communist regime relies heavily on its space programs to glorify the country's technological progress in recent decades, in a race with the West that evokes Soviet-American space rivalry during the Cold War.

Animation above: Yutu-2 rover leave Chang'e-4 lander and start exploring the Von Karman Crater. Animation Credits: CNSA / CLEP / Orbiter.ch Aerospace / Roland Berga.

The words of the Chinese leader come less than a month after Washington announced a return of American astronauts to the moon in 2024, instead of 2028 as originally planned. The United States was the first and only one to send men to the moon between 1969 and 1972.

Zhang said Beijing plans to send its first probe to Mars next year. In addition to the probe currently on the far side of the moon, China also plans to send at the end of this year another machine responsible for bringing lunar samples back to Earth, he said.

Yutu-2 Lunar Rover. Image Credits: CNSA / CLEP

Witnessing the political dimension of these missions, Zhang said that lunar samples would be kept in Shaoshan (center), the hometown of Mao Tse-tung, the founder of the communist regime. China sent a first man into space in 2003 and achieved his first landing of a spacecraft 10 years later.

Related articles & links:

China's Chang'e-4 Probe Wakes Up after First Lunar Night
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2019/02/chinas-change-4-probe-wakes-up-after.html

China's Yutu-2 rover Enters Standby Mode for 'Noon Nap' as Chang'e 4 Tests Continue
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2019/01/chinas-yutu-2-rover-enters-standby-mode.html

Sending American Astronauts to Moon in 2024: NASA Accepts Challenge
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2019/04/sending-american-astronauts-to-moon-in.html

For more information about China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), visit: http://english.spacechina.com/n16421/index.html

For more information about China National Space Administration (CNSA), visit: http://www.cnsa.gov.cn/

Images (mentioned), Animation (mentioned), Text, Credits: AFP/CNSA/CLEP/Orbiter.ch Aerospace/Roland Berga.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

More Head and Eye Pressure Research and Dragon Robotics Training

ISS - Expedition 59 Mission patch.

April 24, 2019

The Expedition 59 crew is unloading one U.S. cargo ship today and preparing for the arrival of another after it launches from Florida next week. The orbital residents also continued exploring how microgravity impacts the human body and a variety of terrestrial materials.

Astronauts Christina Koch and David Saint-Jacques worked Wednesday afternoon to offload some of the 7,600 pounds of cargo the Cygnus space freighter delivered last week. Saint-Jacques is also training today to capture the SpaceX resupply ship with the Canadarm2 robotic arm when it arrives next Thursday. Dragon will be the sixth spaceship parked at the station and occupy the Harmony module’s Earth-facing port.

Image above: Astronauts David Saint-Jacques and Anne McClain practice Canadarm2 robotics maneuvers and spacecraft capture techniques on the robotics workstation in the U.S. Destiny laboratory module. Image Credit: NASA.

The duo also split the day working with a variety of biomedical hardware and research gear to ensure healthy astronauts and successful space research. Koch and Saint-Jacques participated in ultrasound scans for ongoing health checks. Koch then explored the feasibility of manufacturing fiber optic cables in space. Saint-Jacques set up Kubik incubator hardware inside Europe’s Columbus lab module.

International Sapce Station (ISS). Animation Credit: NASA

NASA Flight Engineers Anne McClain and Nick Hague were back collecting more blood, urine and saliva samples today. The samples are spun in a centrifuge, stowed in a science freezer then analyzed for the long-running Fluid Shifts study. The experiment seeks to understand and prevent the upward flow of body fluids in space that cause head and eye pressure in astronauts.

McClain then studied how living aboard the International Space Station affects her perception and cognition. Hague researched and photographed a variety of coating materials for their thermal protection and optical recognition properties.

Related links:

Expedition 59: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition59/index.html

Canadarm2 robotic arm: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/elements/mobile-servicing-system.html

Harmony module: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/elements/harmony

Space research: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/index.html

Fiber optic cables: http://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/astronauts/canadian/active/bio-david-saint-jacques.asp

Columbus lab module: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/elements/europe-columbus-laboratory

Fluid Shifts: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=1126

Perception and cognition: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=979

Coating materials: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=1749

Space Station Research and Technology: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/index.html

International Space Station (ISS): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html

Image (mentioned), Animation (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA/Mark Garcia.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

NASA, FEMA, International Partners Plan Asteroid Impact Exercise

NASA logo.

April 24, 2019

While headlines routinely report on “close shaves” and “near-misses” when near-Earth objects (NEOs) such as asteroids or comets pass relatively close to Earth, the real work of preparing for the possibility of a NEO impact with Earth goes on mostly out of the public eye.

Image above: The Manicouagan impact crater in Quebec, Canada, is one of our many reminders that asteroids have impacted Earth. Although large impacts are rare, it’s important to be prepared. That’s why NASA, other US agencies, and international partners gather periodically to simulate impact scenarios and discuss the best course of action for disaster mitigation. Image Credits: International Space Station.

For more than 20 years, NASA and its international partners have been scanning the skies for NEOs, which are asteroids and comets that orbit the Sun and come within 30 million miles (50 million kilometers) of Earth’s orbit. International groups, such as NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office (PDCO), the European Space Agency’s Space Situational Awareness-NEO Segment, and the International Asteroid Warning Network (IAWN) have made better communication of the hazards posed by NEOs a top priority.

In the spirit of better communication, next week at the 2019 Planetary Defense Conference, NASA’s PDCO and other U.S. agencies and space science institutions, along with international partners, will participate in a “tabletop exercise” that will play out a realistic—but fictional—scenario for an asteroid on an impact trajectory with Earth.

A tabletop exercise of a simulated emergency is commonly used in disaster management planning to help inform involved players of important aspects of a possible disaster and identify issues for accomplishing a successful response. In next week’s exercise, attendees at the conference will play out a fictional NEO impact scenario developed by the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s Center for NEO Studies (CNEOS).

“These exercises have really helped us in the planetary defense community to understand what our colleagues on the disaster management side need to know,” said Lindley Johnson, NASA’s Planetary Defense Officer. “This exercise will help us develop more effective communications with each other and with our governments.”

This type of exercise is also specifically identified as part of the National Near-Earth Object Preparedness Strategy and Action Plan developed over a two-year period and published by the White House in June 2018.

These exercises are not tightly scripted. The point is to investigate how NEO observers, space agency officials, emergency managers, decision makers, and citizens might respond to an actual impact prediction and evolving information. Next week’s exercise events will occur over the five days of the conference, with exercise leaders briefing participants on the status of the scenario at the end of each day and soliciting response ideas and feedback, based on the latest fictional data.

The scenario begins with the fictional premise that on March 26, astronomers “discovered” a NEO they consider potentially hazardous to Earth. After a “few months” of tracking, observers predict that this NEO – dubbed 2019 PDC – poses a 1 in 100 chance of impact with Earth in 2027 (in real life, the international community has decided that a 1 in 100 chance of impact is the threshold for action). Participants in this exercise will discuss potential preparations for asteroid reconnaissance and deflection missions and planning for mitigation of a potential impact’s effects.

Near Earth Asteroids. Image Credit: ESA

NASA has participated in six NEO impact exercises so far – three at Planetary Defense Conferences (2013, 2015, 2017) and three jointly with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The three NASA-FEMA exercises included representatives of several other federal agencies, including the Departments of Defense and State. Each exercise builds on lessons learned in the previous exercise.

What NASA has learned from working with FEMA is that emergency management officials are not focused on the scientific details about the asteroid. “What emergency managers want to know is when, where, and how an asteroid would impact and the type and extent of damage that could occur,” said Leviticus Lewis, Response Operations Division for FEMA.

But the scientific details are what determine these things, so NASA-funded researchers continue to develop capabilities for determining more exact possible impact locations and effects, based on what could be observed about an asteroid’s position, orbital motion and characteristics, to be ready to produce the most accurate predictions possible in the event an actual impact threat were discovered.

“NASA and FEMA will continue to conduct periodic exercises with a continually widening community of U.S .government agencies and international partners,” said Johnson. “They are a great way for us to learn how to work together and meet each other’s needs and the objectives laid out in the White House National NEO Preparedness Action Plan.”

Related links:

Planetary Defense Coordination Office (PDCO): https://www.nasa.gov/planetarydefense

2019 Planetary Defense Conference: http://pdc.iaaweb.org/

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s Center for NEO Studies (CNEOS): https://cneos.jpl.nasa.gov/pd/cs/pdc19/

National Near-Earth Object Preparedness Strategy and Action Plan: https://www.nasa.gov/feature/federal-government-releases-national-near-earth-object-preparedness-plan

NEO impact exercises: https://cneos.jpl.nasa.gov/pd/cs/

Asteroids: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/asteroids/main/index.html

Images (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA/Tricia Talbert.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

Landslides in Mars' Cerberus Fossae

NASA - Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) patch.

April 24, 2019

Cerberus Fossae is a steep-sided set of troughs cutting volcanic plains to the east of Elysium Mons. Steep slopes on Mars have active landslides (also called "mass wasting"), and here we see evidence for two types of activity.

First, the light bluish boulders on the slope appear to originate at a layer of bedrock (also light blue) near the top of the section. Second, the dark thin lines are recurring slope lineae, probably also due to mass wasting, but composed of finer-grained materials.

This image was captured by the HiRISE camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO): http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/MRO/main/index.html

Image, Text, Credits: NASA/Yvette Smith/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

Space Station Science Highlights: Week of April 15, 2019

ISS - Expedition 59 Mission patch.

April 24, 2019

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station received a Cygnus commercial resupply ship from Northrop Grumman last week that brought additional science experiments to the orbiting lab. More science arrives in the next few weeks aboard a SpaceX Dragon resupply ship.

Here are details on some of the scientific investigations the Expedition 59 crew members conducted the week of April 15:

Measuring muscle changes in space

Image above: NASA astronaut Anne McClain performs a session for Time Perception in Microgravity, which investigates how crew members aboard the space station perceive time. Astronauts evaluate or reproduce the length of time they see a blue square in the center of the head-mounted display and scientists compare the results with pre- and post-flight baselines. Image Credit: NASA.

The crew collected blood samples and performed ultrasound scans and measurements for the Myotones investigation, which observes the biochemical properties of muscles, such as tone, stiffness, and elasticity, during long-term exposure to spaceflight. Results from this investigation may provide insight into principles of human resting muscle tone and lead to the development of new treatments for rehabilitation on future space missions and on Earth.

Examining how spaceflight affects antibody production

Rodent Research-12 (RR12) examines the effects of spaceflight on the function of antibody production and immune memory. Scientists know that spaceflight has a dramatic influence on immune response. This research looks at the effect following an actual challenge to the body’s immune system. Using a mouse model makes this possible, since the mouse immune system closely parallels that of humans. Last week, the crew set up the habitat and transferred the mice into it for the investigation.

Animation above: NASA astronaut Anne McClain works on the Electrostatic Levitation Furnace (ELF), an experimental facility that can measure thermophysical properties of high temperature melts and achieve solidification from deeply undercooled melts. Animation Credit: NASA.

Measuring perception of time and space

The accurate perception of objects in the environment is a prerequisite for spatial orientation and reliable performance of motor tasks. Motion perception, sound localization, speech, and fine motor coordination in microgravity also depend on time perception. The Time Perception study quantifies subjective changes in a person’s perception of time during and after long-duration exposure to microgravity. The crew used a head-mounted Oculus Rift display, headphones, finger trackball, and laptop computer to perform sessions for this investigation. A program on the laptop creates visual and audio stimuli and measures the subject's response to spatial and time perception.

A new habitat for mice in space

The crew prepared the JAXA Mouse Habitat Unit for the upcoming JAXA Mouse Mission. That mission analyzes changes in gene expression patterns in several organs and the effects on germ cell development in mice exposed to the space environment for more than 30 days. The Mouse Mission also serves as verification of the Habitat Unit, designed to house mice to and from the space station for scientific investigations. Results could provide fundamental information about how prolonged exposure to space affects humans.

Image above: Canadian Space Agency astronaut David Saint Jacques conducts a session of ISS HAM or Amateur Radio on the International Space Station. This program gives students around the world the experience of talking directly with crew members on the space station, inspiring them to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math, and engaging them with radio science technology through amateur radio. Image Credit: NASA.

Other investigations on which the crew performed work:

- The Combustion Integrated Rack (CIR) includes an optics bench, combustion chamber, fuel and oxidizer control, and five different cameras for performing combustion investigations in microgravity: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Facility.html?#id=317

- The SUBSA investigation crystallizes melts in microgravity to improve understanding of solidification phenomena and crystal production: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=308

- The ISS Experience, a virtual reality film, documents daily life aboard the space station to educate a variety of audiences about life aboard the orbiting lab and science conducted there: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7877

- Airway Monitoring analyzes exhaled air to study airway inflammation in crew members and help maintain crew well-being on future missions: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=1067

- Lighting Effects studies the effects on the circadian rhythms, sleep, and cognitive performance of crew members when fluorescent light bulbs on the space station are replaced with solid-state light-emitting diodes (LEDs): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=2013

- Food Acceptability examines changes in the appeal of food aboard the space station during long-duration missions: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7562

- Standard Measures captures a consistent and simple set of measures from crew members throughout the ISS Program in order to characterize adaptive responses to and risks of living in space: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7711

Space to Ground: Marathon Mission: 04/19/2019

Related links:

Expedition 59: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition59/index.html

Myotones: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7573

Rodent Research-12 (RR12): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7868

Time Perception: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7504

Mouse Habitat Unit: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Facility.html?#id=1537

Spot the Station: https://spotthestation.nasa.gov/

Space Station Research and Technology: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/index.html

International Space Station (ISS): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html

Images (mentioned), Animation (mentioned), Video (NASA), Text, Credits: NASA/Michael Johnson/Jorge Sotomayor, Lead Increment Scientist Expeditions 59/60.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

A New Signal for a Neutron Star Collision Discovered

NASA - Chandra X-ray Observatory patch.

April 23, 2019

A bright burst of X-rays has been discovered by NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory in a galaxy 6.6 billion light years from Earth. This event likely signaled the merger of two neutron stars and could give astronomers fresh insight into how neutron stars – dense stellar objects packed mainly with neutrons – are built.

When two neutron stars merge they produce jets of high energy particles and radiation fired in opposite directions. If the jet is pointed along the line of sight to the Earth, a flash, or burst, of gamma rays can be detected. If the jet is not pointed in our direction, a different signal is needed to identify the merger.

The detection of gravitational waves – ripples in spacetime – is one such signal. Now, with the observation of a bright flare of X-rays, astronomers have found another signal, and discovered that two neutron stars likely merged to form a new, heavier and fast-spinning neutron star with an extraordinarily strong magnetic field.

“We’ve found a completely new way to spot a neutron star merger,” said Yongquan Xue of the University of Science and Technology of China and lead author of a paper appearing in Nature. “The behavior of this X-ray source matches what one of our team members predicted for these events.”

Chandra observed the source, dubbed XT2, as it suddenly appeared and then faded away after about seven hours. The source is located in the Chandra Deep Field-South, the deepest X-ray image ever taken that contains almost 12 weeks of Chandra observing time, taken at various intervals over several years. The source appeared on March 22, 2015 and was discovered later in analysis of archival data.

“The serendipitous discovery of XT2 makes another strong case that nature’s fecundity repeatedly transcends human imagination,” said co-author Niel Brandt of the Pennsylvania State University and principal investigator of the relevant Chandra Deep Field-South.

The researchers identified the likely origin of XT2 by studying how its X-ray light varied with time, and comparing this behavior with predictions made in 2013 by Bing Zhang from the University of Nevada in Las Vegas, one of the corresponding authors of the paper. The X-rays showed a characteristic signature that matched those predicted for a newly-formed magnetar – a neutron star spinning around hundreds of times per second and possessing a tremendously strong magnetic field about a quadrillion times that of Earth’s.

The team thinks that the magnetar lost energy in the form of an X-ray-emitting wind, slowing down its rate of spin as the source faded. The amount of X-ray emission stayed roughly constant in X-ray brightness for about 30 minutes, then decreased in brightness by more than a factor of 300 over 6.5 hours before becoming undetectable. This showed that the neutron star merger produced a new, larger neutron star that survived at least a few hours rather than collapsing immediately into a black hole.

Chandra X-ray Observatory

This result is important because it gives astronomers a chance to learn about the interior of neutron stars, objects that are so dense that their properties could never be replicated on Earth.

“We can’t throw neutron stars together in a lab to see what happens, so we have to wait until the universe does it for us,” said Zhang. “If two neutron stars can collide and a heavy neutron star survives, then this tells us that their structure is relatively stiff and resilient.”

Neutron star mergers have been prominent in the news since the advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) detected gravitational waves from one in 2017. That source, known as GW170817, produced a burst of gamma rays and an afterglow in light detected by many other telescopes, including Chandra. Xue’s team think that XT2 would also have been a source of gravitational waves, however it occurred before Advanced LIGO started its first observing run, and it was too distant to have been detected in any case. 

Xue’s team also considered whether the collapse of a massive star could have caused XT2, rather than a neutron star merger. The source is in the outskirts of its host galaxy, which aligns with the idea that supernova explosions that left behind the neutron stars kicked them out of the center a few billion years earlier. The galaxy itself also has certain properties – including a low rate of star formation compared to other galaxies of a similar mass – that are much more consistent with the type of galaxy where the merger of two neutron stars is expected to occur. Massive stars are young and are associated with high rates of star formation.

“The host-galaxy properties of XT2 indeed boost our confidence in explaining its origin,” said co-author Ye Li from Peking University.

The team estimated the rate at which events like XT2 should occur, and found that it agrees with the rate deduced from the detection of GW170817. However, both estimates are highly uncertain because they depend on the detection of just one object each, so more examples are needed.

“We've started looking at other Chandra data to see if similar sources are present”, said co-author Xuechen Zheng, also of the University of Science and Technology of China. “Just as with this source, the data sitting in archives might contain some unexpected treasures.”

A paper describing these results appeared in the April 11th issue of Nature: https://arxiv.org/abs/1904.05368

NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, manages the Chandra program for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Cambridge, Massachusetts, controls Chandra's science and flight operations.

Read more from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory: http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/2019/xt2/

For more Chandra images, multimedia and related materials, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/chandra

Image, Animation, Credits: X-ray: NASA/CXC/Uni. of Science and Technology of China/Y. Xue et al; Optical: NASA/STScI/Text: Credits NASA/Lee Mohon.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

Major Incident for SpaceX: Crew Dragon Capsule Exploded in Ground Test

SpaceX  - Crew Dragon / NASA Demo-1 patch.

April 23, 2019

On April 20, 2019, during a static test, the Crew Dragon capsule that had flown to the ISS was likely completely destroyed. It was to be reused for an emergency ejection test in mid-June. The next flight of a Dragon ship, which was to be flown by two astronauts, will be delayed.

Image above: Explosion of the Dragon capsule during a ground test on April 20, 2019. Image Credit: Florida Today.

SpaceX and NASA probably suffered another major setback on April 20, 2019. Indeed, the Crew Dragon capsule that returned to Earth on March 8 after a successful mission to the International Space Station (ISS) was destroyed in an explosion. In any case, this is what a video broadcast on social networks suggests (anonymously, perhaps by an employee of SpaceX) and photos taken miles away from the Kennedy Space Center showing a large cloud of orange smoke rise from the test area.

SpaceX Crew Dragon Explosion

As pressure-fed rocket engines specifically designed to be the basis of a launch escape system, Crew Dragon and its SuperDraco thrusters are meant to be ready to ignite at a millisecond’s notice once they are armed in a flight-ready configuration. It’s safe to say that ten seconds away from a specifically planned ignition is one of those moments, although there is a limited chance that SpaceX’s static fire procedures intentionally diverge from an abort-triggered ignition. Regardless, the fact that Crew Dragon was destroyed before the ignition of its SuperDracos is not an encouraging sign.

Artist's view of SpaceX Crew Dragon docking at ISS. Image Credit: NASA

Instead of a problem with its high-performance abort thrusters, it can be tentatively concluded that Crew Dragon’s explosion originated in its fuel tanks or propellant plumbing. Such an immediate and energetic explosion points more towards a total failure of propellant lines or valves (or their avionics), while another – and potentially far more concerning – cause could be one of Crew Dragon’s pressure vessels. In a space as enclosed as a Dragon capsule, the rupture of a pressure vessel could trigger a chain reaction of pressure vessel failures, freeing both oxidizer (NTO) and fuel (MMH). Known as hypergolic propellant, NTO and MMH ignite immediately (and violently so) when mixed.

It’s quite possible that the accident investigation to follow will be SpaceX’s most difficult and trying yet. Regardless of the specific cause, the footage of Crew Dragon C201’s demise does not support any positive conclusions about the fate of astronauts or passengers, had they been aboard during the violent explosion. Seemingly triggered in some way by the very system meant to safely extricate Crew Dragon and its astronauts from a failing Falcon 9 rocket, major work will need to be done to prove to NASA that the spacecraft is safe. Sadly, Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft – funded in parallel with Crew Dragon under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program – suffered a far less severe but no less significant failure during a static fire test of its own abort thrusters. Boeing was forced to remove the impacted hardware from its flight plans to extensively clean, repair, and rework the service module.

SuperDraco - Test Fire. Video Credit: SpaceX

NASA is now faced with the fact that both of the spacecraft it supported with CCP have exhibited major failures related to their launch escape systems. Crew Dragon’s catastrophic explosion comes as a particularly extreme surprise given how extensively SpaceX has already tested the SuperDraco engines and plumbing, as well as the successful completion of the spacecraft’s launch debut. In the process of DM-1 launch preparations, Crew Dragon likely spent a minimum of 80 minutes with its SuperDraco thrusters and propellant systems primed and ready to abort at any second, apparently without a single mildly-concerning issue.

Godspeed to SpaceX and NASA as they enter into this challenging and unplanned failure investigation.

Related articles:

NASA, SpaceX Launch First Flight Test of Space System Designed for Crew
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2019/03/nasa-spacex-launch-first-flight-test-of.html

SpaceX Crew Dragon Undock from ISS and Splashes Down in Atlantic Ocean
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2019/03/spacex-crew-dragon-undock-from-iss-and.html

Related links:

SpaceX Crew Dragon: https://blogs.nasa.gov/commercialcrew

Commercial Crew Program: https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/commercial/crew/index.html

SpaceX: https://www.spacex.com/

Images (mentioned), Video (mentioned), Text, Credits: Florida Today/Orbiter.ch Aerospace/Roland Berga.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch