{"id":17826,"date":"2020-01-19T19:01:11","date_gmt":"2020-01-19T11:01:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/spacex-aces-fiery-rehearsal-of-worst-case-scenario-for-crew-dragon-spaceflights\/"},"modified":"2020-01-19T19:01:11","modified_gmt":"2020-01-19T11:01:11","slug":"spacex-aces-fiery-rehearsal-of-worst-case-scenario-for-crew-dragon-spaceflights","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/spacex-aces-fiery-rehearsal-of-worst-case-scenario-for-crew-dragon-spaceflights\/","title":{"rendered":"SpaceX aces fiery rehearsal of worst-case scenario for Crew Dragon spaceflights"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
SpaceX\u2019s Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from its Florida launch pad to begin an in-flight test of the Crew Dragon space taxi\u2019s abort system. (SpaceX \/ NASA via YouTube)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

With a fiery flash and volleys of cheers, SpaceX and NASA today rehearsed something they hope will never happen: a catastrophic rocket failure at the worst time in the launch of a crewed mission to the International Space Station.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, the closest things to crew members on today\u2019s in-flight abort test of the Crew Dragon spaceship were two test dummies, sitting on sensors in the seats that will tell engineers how flesh-and-blood fliers would have weathered the aborted trip.<\/p>\n

If the results of the test look good, that should take care of the final major hurdle before two actual NASA astronauts, Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, ride a different Crew Dragon to the station and back later this year.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s kinda the final exam,\u201d Hurley explained in a pre-launch NASA interview.<\/p>\n

Although they\u2019re not flying this time around, the two astronauts rehearsed all the steps they\u2019d take before the launch, right down to donning their SpaceX-designed spacesuits and strolling through the elevated walkway leading to the Dragon\u2019s hatch.<\/p>\n

SpaceX also practiced the at-sea recovery operation that would come into play if a mission had to be aborted during the ascent to orbit.<\/p>\n

\"NASA
NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley wear their SpaceX-designed spacesuits as they practice going through the launch-pad walkway to a Crew Dragon spacecraft. (NASA Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After some weather-caused delays, SpaceX launched the uncrewed Crew Dragon spaceship atop a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 10:30 a.m. ET (7:30 a.m. PT)..<\/p>\n

About a minute and a half after launch, the Dragon shut down the Falcon 9\u2019s rocket engines, fired up its own SuperDraco thrusters and pulled away from the rocket, traveling at 2.2 times the speed of sound. Moments later, the Falcon 9\u2019s booster broke up as it fell, lighting up its fuel and producing a huge orange ball of fire.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a mile of distance between the booster and the Dragon, and it was just in a matter of seconds that that separation was created,\u201d NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said at a post-mission briefing. \u201cSo that just shows you the capability, and all the while, never exceeding 3.5 G\u2019s. That\u2019s really amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Dragon coasted into a safe descent, jettisoned its \u201ctrunk,\u201d deployed its parachutes and splashed down in the Atlantic, about 20 miles offshore. The whole mission lasted about 10 minutes from liftoff to splashdown.<\/p>\n

SpaceX employees who gathered at the company\u2019s mission control in Hawthorne, Calif., cheered every twist and turn of the test, from the launch to the opening of the parachutes and the streaming-video splash into the ocean. Within minutes, the recovery team began working to pluck the Dragon out of the drink and put it on a ship for the return to shore.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs far as we can tell thus far, it was a picture-perfect mission,\u201d SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said. He described himself as \u201csuper fired-up\u201d about the outcome of the test. (Update for 6:30 p.m. PT Jan. 20:<\/strong> A day after the test, SpaceX transported the Dragon back to Cape Canaveral for inspection, and Musk tweeted that the spacecraft\u2019s unpressurized trunk was \u201cin surprisingly good shape.\u201d)<\/p>\n

\"Falcon
SpaceX\u2019s Falcon 9 booster explodes after the Dragon capsule makes its escape. (SpaceX \/ NASA via YouTube)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Ensuring survivability in the event of a launch malfunction is a must-have for all the spacecraft carrying crew members to the space station. The importance of that requirement was brought home in October 2018 when a Russian Soyuz rocket went awry during its ascent.<\/p>\n

In that case, the Soyuz escape system worked as it was supposed to, blasting the crew capsule away from the rocket and carrying NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russia\u2019s Alexey Ovchinin to a rough but safe landing.<\/p>\n

SpaceX successfully tested the Crew Dragon\u2019s abort system in a simulated launch pad emergency in 2015, and Boeing ran a similar test of its CST-100 Starliner space taxi last November. SpaceX also conducted a successful uncrewed Dragon mission to the space station and back last March.<\/p>\n

This in-flight abort test was meant to make absolutely sure the Dragon could handle a worst-case scenario safely. Such a confidence-building measure is particularly important in the wake of an anomaly that destroyed a test version of the Dragon last April, forcing a redesign of the spacecraft\u2019s propulsion system.<\/p>\n

In the weeks ahead, NASA and SpaceX will analyze the results of today\u2019s test, and run additional tests of the Crew Dragon\u2019s parachute system. If those assessments bring good results, it may not be that long before Behnken and Hurley play their part in space history.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnother amazing milestone is complete for our very soon-to-be project, which is launching American astronauts on American rockets from American soil for the first time since the retirement of the space shuttles,\u201d NASA\u2019s Bridenstine told reporters.<\/p>\n

The Crew Dragon for Behnken and Hurley is due to be delivered to Kennedy Space Center by the end of this month, and Musk said the hardware should be ready to fly by the end of March. \u201cIt appears probable that the first crewed launch would occur in the second quarter,\u201d Musk said.<\/p>\n