{"id":39160,"date":"2016-01-08T21:45:42","date_gmt":"2016-01-08T13:45:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/spacex-falcon-9-v1-1-conducts-static-fire-test-ahead-of-jason-3-mission\/"},"modified":"2016-01-08T21:45:42","modified_gmt":"2016-01-08T13:45:42","slug":"spacex-falcon-9-v1-1-conducts-static-fire-test-ahead-of-jason-3-mission","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/spacex-falcon-9-v1-1-conducts-static-fire-test-ahead-of-jason-3-mission\/","title":{"rendered":"SpaceX Falcon 9 v1.1 conducts static fire test ahead of Jason-3 mission"},"content":{"rendered":"

SpaceX rolled out its Falcon 9 rocket for a static fire that was conducted on Monday at the company\u2019s west coast launch facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.  The Jason-3 mission, scheduled to launch on 17 January 2016, will monitor Earth\u2019s ocean\u2019s surface topography and currents for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration as part of the U.S. federal agency\u2019s ongoing climate change research.<\/p>\n

Path To Static Fire:<\/b><\/p>\n

Activities at SpaceX\u2019s West Coast launch facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, are ramping up for the scheduled mid-January launch of the Jason-3 mission for NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).<\/p>\n

\"Z65The launch campaign for Jason-3 marks the first time since September 2013 (the CASSIOPE mission) that SpaceX launch operations have taken place at Vandenberg and only the second time that SpaceX will make use of its west coast launch facilities.<\/p>\n

As with all Falcon 9 missions, the first stage of the Falcon 9 has undergone a series of hot firings at the company\u2019s McGregor, Texas, Test Facility.<\/p>\n

Following the loss of the CRS-7 mission, the second stage was sent back to the SpaceX factory at Hawthorne, California for related modifications and improvements, before enjoying a successful 60 second test firing at McGregor on November 5 (L2).<\/p>\n

Now in the business end of the flow, mating operations with the Falcon 9 and Transporter Erector (TEL) were delayed during the week due to adverse weather conditions at the usually fair-weather Vandenberg facility as southern California moves through the effects of this year\u2019s strong El Nino event.<\/p>\n

\"2016-01-11-113318\"Mating operations resumed at the end of the week for one of the major pre-launch milestones: rollout, pad integration and the static test fire of the Falcon 9\u2019s core stage at the pad.<\/p>\n

NASA mission updates<\/path>NASA educational resources<\/path>Astronomy<\/path>\n

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/p>\n

The rollout of the Falcon 9 first stage for the Jason-3 static fire took place on Sunday ahead of Monday\u2019s test firing, following the successful completion of the Flight Readiness Review (FRR) on Friday.<\/p>\n

For the test, the Falcon 9 first stage was erected at the launch pad for static fire operations.<\/p>\n

\"2016-01-12-051853\"Notably, FRR notes (L2) added the static fire was to involve the nine Merlin 1D engines firing for a few seconds longer than a usual static fire test, due to the length of time that has passed since the Stage was fired up during McGregor testing.<\/p>\n

The test firing \u2013 lasting seven seconds in total \u2013 was completed deep into the test window, shortly after 5:30pm local time. (L2 Photos and video of the Static Fire \u2013 Link)<\/p>\n

Specifically for SpaceX, the static test fires help the company ensure the functionality of the propellant and propulsion systems of the Falcon 9 as well as all of the launch pad\u2019s systems in the days prior to launch.<\/p>\n

\"2016-01-12-051938\"To this end, every static test firing at the pad involves a full propellant loading sequence, launch countdown and engine ignition operations, and testing of the pad\u2019s high-volume water deluge system.<\/p>\n

These static fires provide SpaceX and the launch teams with a full dress rehearsal for the actual launch and allows them to identify and fix issues with the vehicle and\/or pad prior to the commencement of actual launch operations.<\/p>\n

SpaceX\u2019s most recent static fire before the ORBCOMM-2 Return To Launch mission in December proved beyond doubt the value of the company\u2019s static-fire-for-every-mission approach.<\/p>\n

In December, a series of attempts over multiple days to achieve static fire for the ORBCOMM-2 mission\u2019s Falcon 9 v1.1 Full Thrust (FT) variant encountered multiple issues.<\/p>\n

\"ScreenSpecifically, the issues \u2013 as understood \u2013 stemmed from the new type of super-chilled oxidizer debuting on the mission.<\/p>\n

Nonetheless, the repeated delays led to minute procedural changes and increased understanding of how deep cryo liquid oxygen interacts with the vehicle at the pad during loading and launch operations.<\/p>\n

And those delays, encountered and accounted for during the static fire, led to the almost unprecedented on-time on-the-first-attempt launch of a brand new version of the Falcon 9 rocket utilizing a never before used propellant.<\/p>\n

For the Jason-3 Falcon 9, engine and vehicle data will be analyzed, followed by de-tanking operations ahead of the lowering of the Transporter Erector (TE) and roll back to the hanger for final integration processing in anticipation of launch.<\/p>\n

See Also<\/h4>\n