The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Dragon capsule on its cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station, suffered an anomaly to one of its first stage engines.
According to the launch provider, approximately one minute and 19 seconds…
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Dragon capsule on its cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station, suffered an anomaly to one of its first stage engines.
According to the launch provider, approximately one minute and 19 seconds into the launch on 7 October, one of the rocket’s nine Merlin engines, Engine 1, lost pressure suddenly and an engine shutdown command was issued.
None of Falcon 9’s other eight engines were impacted by this event and the rocket undertook an adjusted ascent profile in order to complete its mission with the Dragon still on course to dock with the ISS
However, the engine failure and new flight path meant that the rocket’s secondary payload, satellite operator Orbcomm’s OG2 prototype satellite, was deployed into an orbit that was lower than intended.
Orbcomm and the satellite’s manufacturer Sierra Nevada Corporation have been in contact with the satellite and are working to determine if and the extent to which the orbit can be raised to an operational orbit using the satellite’s on-board propulsion system.
SatelliteFinance understands that the satellite was insured for US$10m with underwriter Chartis providing the entirety of the cover. It is at too early a stage to know whether the satellite operator will make a claim.
Orbcomm plans to launch an additional eight second generation LEO satellites on a Falcon 9 in mid-2013, with the remainder of the constellation of 18 OG2 satellites expected to be launched by SpaceX in 2014.
Unlike this latest launch, the next OG2 launches will both be the primary payload on the rocket.
