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Preface
A sudden disaster broke the tranquility of space exploration, and the "Falcon 9" rocket of the United States Space Exploration Technology Corporation suddenly failed during a routine launch mission, and 20 "Starlink" satellites faced extinction.
Was the accident a human error or a technical flaw? How did SpaceX respond?
The content of this article is written with authoritative information combined with personal opinions, and the source of the literature and screenshots have been marked at the end of the article, please be aware.
Information sources:
Hunan Daily: The failure of the U.S. Falcon 9 rocket to launch the Starlink satellite was the first launch failure in more than seven years
The launch of the Falcon 9 rocket failed
On July 11, a sudden disaster shattered the peace of the United States space exploration technology company.
On the same day, SpaceX's "Falcon 9" rocket was launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, and carried out a routine "Starlink" satellite launch mission as planned.
However, the good times did not last long, and an accident happened about an hour after the rocket flight, according to SpaceX's official statement, the rocket's second-stage engine suddenly malfunctioned when it was re-ignited in space, resulting in an ignition failure.
As a direct result of this mistake, the 20 Starlink satellites on board were not sent to the predetermined orbital altitude, but instead were thrown into an orbit far below the plan.
You must know that for satellites, orbital altitude is not a trivial problem, it directly determines the life and work efficiency of satellites, and this accident has made these 20 unlucky "Starlink" face the fate of burning.
According to SpaceX, due to the low orbital altitude, these satellites will soon be affected by atmospheric drag, gradually reduce their speed, and eventually crash out of control and turn into ashes in the atmosphere.
This is undoubtedly a major blow to SpaceX's "Starlink" program.
You know, "Starlink" is Musk's favorite, he plans to launch tens of thousands of satellites to form a space-based Internet covering the world, and now there are suddenly 20 fewer satellites on this grand blueprint.
In particular, the Falcon 9 is SpaceX's signature rocket, which has been successfully launched more than 300 times before, and this sudden launch failure will undoubtedly call into question the reliability of this star rocket.
For a while, people were discussing: Was this accident a human error or a technical defect? How will SpaceX respond to this crisis?
Information sources:
Sina Finance: Musk responded to the failure of the launch of the Falcon 9, and the second-stage engine had a rare failure
Initial search for the cause of the accident
According to SpaceX's official statement, the direct cause of the accident was a malfunction in the second stage of the rocket, specifically the failure of the second stage rocket to restart the engine during the second ignition in space.
This process may sound complicated, but in simple terms, the rocket needs to restart its engine several times in space to adjust its flight trajectory and speed.
And this time, the second-stage rocket dropped the chain at a critical moment and failed to complete this important step, and it is worth mentioning that before that, the first-stage part of the rocket actually performed quite well.
It is reported that it successfully sent the second stage and the satellite to a predetermined altitude and completed its mission, and subsequently, it also returned to Earth as planned and landed safely on the offshore recovery platform.
It can be said that until the second level had problems, the launch mission was quite smooth, but as the so-called "embankment of a thousand miles collapsed in an anthill", a seemingly small mistake caused a big disaster.
According to SpaceX, the second stage failed to complete the second ignition because there was a propellant leak during the flight, which caused the rocket engine to not get enough fuel to reignite.
This explanation, at first glance, seems reasonable, but in the eyes of some netizens, things may not be so simple.
It was pointed out that if there really was such a serious problem as a fuel leak, wouldn't the ground crew not notice the anomaly before the rocket was launched?
You know, rockets have to go through layers of inspections before launch, and such obvious faults should not be ignored.
Some netizens turned up SpaceX's "previous record", pointing out that the company had delayed the launch of the rocket many times because of a similar propellant leak.
This can't help but make people wonder if this so-called "leak" will be another excuse used by SpaceX to cover up other problems?
Of course, these are just speculations from netizens, and the truth remains to be further investigated by the authorities, but whatever the cause, it is certain that this accident is a wake-up call for SpaceX.
You must know that rocket launch is not a joke, every component and every link must be perfected and foolproof, otherwise it may cause a catastrophe and pay a heavy price.
SpaceX faces challenges
When it comes to the consequences of this accident, the most direct is the fate of the 20 unfortunate "Starlink" satellites, which are now facing a real "speed of life and death".
According to data released by NASA, the United States space, the satellites were deployed to an orbit much lower than expected at an altitude of only 285 kilometers due to a second-stage rocket failure.
This altitude is not far away, but it is very close, and you must know that at this altitude, the density of the atmosphere is already very large, which is tantamount to a deadly "trap" for satellites.
In such a low-orbit environment, satellites will be constantly affected by atmospheric drag, and each time they orbit the Earth, they will lose a lot of speed and energy at perigee (the lowest point of the orbit).
As time goes on, their orbits will get lower and lower, and they will eventually die in the flames of the atmosphere.
One might ask, can't satellites fly back to a safe altitude under their own power? Unfortunately, it's not that simple.
According to NASA simulation data, in an ultra-low orbit of 135 km, an object with a speed of 8 km/h will be completely dragged down by atmospheric drag in just 2-3 hours, crash and burn up.
And the Starlink satellites were thrown to an altitude of 285 kilometers, and the situation will only get worse than that, according to SpaceX, the ground team has given up on trying to save these satellites, and they are destined to become a magnificent "meteorite shower".
What is even more troubling for SpaceX is the impact of the accident on its reputation and market competitiveness.
You know, "Falcon 9" is SpaceX's signature rocket, it has been successfully launched more than 300 times before, so it is known as "the world's most reliable rocket".
And now, this golden signboard was suddenly smashed by the second-stage rocket in his hand.
For a while, the outside world questioned SpaceX, and some people asked how the so-called "most reliable" rocket could make such a low-level mistake? Some people wonder, does this expose SpaceX's technical and management loopholes?
It is foreseeable that this accident will force SpaceX to re-examine its technical processes and management systems, find loopholes, and learn lessons.
Safety and reliability are important
This accident is a wake-up call for the entire commercial space community, reminding us once again that in this new space era full of opportunities and challenges, safety and reliability should always be our top priority.
For SpaceX, the accident is undoubtedly a painful lesson, exposing some of the company's technical and management loopholes, highlighting the magnitude of space flight and the intolerance of sloppiness.
In fact, Musk himself responded to this failure.
On social media, he admitted that this was the first launch failure of the Falcon 9 rocket in more than seven years, due to the explosion of the second stage rocket while restarting the engine in space, and the exact cause is still under investigation.
At the same time, Musk also stressed that SpaceX will work closely with the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the accident, identify the root cause and take the necessary corrective actions to ensure the success of future missions.
This statement undoubtedly reflects the attitude of Musk and SpaceX to face up to the problem and have the courage to take responsibility, but in the eyes of some observers, it is not enough to just "make up for the dead", and SpaceX also needs to fundamentally rethink its own development strategy.
You must know that in recent years, SpaceX has been vigorously promoting the commercial launch business, and the frequency of launches is getting higher and higher, this year alone, the "Falcon 9" has carried out nearly 20 launch missions, an average of once every two weeks.
Although such a high-intensity launch rhythm improves efficiency, it undoubtedly brings great pressure to the technical team and equipment and facilities.
In this context, the launch failure may be a signal to SpaceX to "slow down".
It reminds them that while pursuing launch efficiency, they should pay more attention to safety and reliability, after all, no matter how advanced the technology and how grand the plan is, if it is built on the foundation of potential safety hazards, it may be burned.
This lesson applies not only to SpaceX, but also to other commercial space companies such as Blue Origin and Virgin Orbit, and the accident is undoubtedly a wake-up call for all of them.
At the same time, the accident has also put forward new requirements for the regulatory authorities, with the increasing frequency of commercial space activities, the traditional space regulatory system seems to be difficult to fully adapt to the new situation.
How do you encourage innovation while ensuring safety and quality? How to respect the laws of business while strengthening the necessary supervision and control? These are all new issues facing regulators.
epilogue
The failure of the launch of the "Falcon 9" rocket is undoubtedly a "sudden brake" on the road of commercial aerospace development.
It taught SpaceX and the entire space community a vivid "safety lesson", reminding them to always remember the importance of safety and quality while chasing their dreams of space.
The accident exposed some of SpaceX's technical and management loopholes, highlighting the risks behind the rapid development of commercial spaceflight.
At the same time, this accident is also a wake-up call for the entire commercial space community. It reminds all aerospace companies that in this new era of increasing competition, safety and quality should always be our top priority.
In general, Musk's company needs to reflect, but they should also be aware of the seriousness of the problem, speed does not represent strength, especially the speed that cannot guarantee the quality, in fact, it is a disguised scourge of orbital space and pollution of the environment.
This issue needs the attention of Musk's company, and it should also attract the attention of United States.
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