Exciting news for space enthusiasts! The Vulcan rocket is one step closer to its highly anticipated debut launch after a successful engine-firing test last week. However, there is still one critical issue that needs to be resolved before the large booster can take off. The rocket’s Centaur V upper stage exploded during a test in March, and modifications need to be made before it can be deemed safe for launch. United Launch Alliance’s CEO, Tory Bruno, recently tweeted that the root cause of the failure had been identified, but no new launch date has been established yet. Sources suggest that the flight may not occur until the fourth quarter of this year due to additional work needed.
On June 7, United Launch Alliance completed an essential milestone by conducting a hot-fire test of Vulcan’s first-stage engines. The BE-4 engines, built by Blue Origin, appeared to be a complete success, and the company needs to fully review data from the test. Delivery of the BE-4 engines had been delayed for several years while Blue Origin completed its development and testing.
In replies on Twitter, Bruno confirmed that the investigation into the Centaur failure is complete. It appears that the hydrogen tank failed during a pressure test at Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama. Bruno stated that the super thin, high-performance steel skin needs to be a little thicker near the top of the dome, and corrective action and retesting will be done. United Launch Alliance has been working closely with the US Space Force, which has been the company’s most important customer since its inception nearly two decades ago.
There have been growing concerns about the readiness of Vulcan, which was supposed to start launching national security missions in 2022. However, that will now not happen until at least 2024 because Vulcan must fly two “certification” flights before it is deemed safe enough for valuable reconnaissance satellites. The US Government Accountability Office report mentioned that delays were causing military officials working on the Phase 2 launch program to consider their options.
SpaceX, the American aerospace manufacturer and space transportation services company, announced that the Falcon 9 rocket passed its engine test on Sunday evening, but during a subsequent delay, an abnormality was detected in the rocket’s upper stage. As a result, the launch of the rocket has been postponed.
The rocket, carrying a communications satellite named ‘Vulcan’, was due to launch out of Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida late on Sunday evening. The undertaking had been marked with optimism as the test of its nine engine Merlin 1D rocket core was successful. However, during a prior postponed static fire test of the rocket’s upper stage propulsion system on Monday, an anomaly was detected.
SpaceX noted that the rocket and its payload were in no danger during the test, and had been shut down safely. However, as a result of the anomaly, the company has decided to delay the launch and further investigate the issue.
In the statement released by SpaceX, the company noted that “We have decided to delay launching the GPS III SV04 mission to allow for additional inspections and analyses to ensure the highest level of mission assurance for our customer.”
SpaceX engineers and technicians are working hard to try and solve the issue so that the mission can be launched as soon as possible, but at this point, no exact date for the launch has been given. The ultimate goal of the mission is to deploy the satellite, known as ‘Vulcan’, into its orbit and it is believed that it will eventually lead to a more reliable, cheaper and efficient communications system for the US Air Force.
The potential delay is the latest setback in a launch schedule that was, to begin with, pushed back by two weeks due to what SpaceX referred to as a ‘technical issue’ at the Launch Complex 40.
