An engine test-firing considered a key milestone to the inaugural launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket was aborted Tuesday at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.The 18-story Falcon 9 was anchored to its pad when countdown clocks halted two seconds before nine engines at the base of its first stage were to ignite. Engine valves were closed and residual rocket propellant was purged, creating a flash of orange fire.
Black smoke billowed up the side of the rocket, and a thin cloud of white smoke spread out around its base."The engines did not ignite and there was no engine fire,” SpaceX said in a statement released tonight.
An unspecified problem during the engine start-up sequence was cited as the cause.
After the countdown cutoff, liquid oxygen and a highly refined kerosene were drained from the rocket. Inspections were to begin tonight. A data review is slated for tomorrow, and another test-firing attempt will be made in three or four days.
SpaceX already had put in a request with the U.S. Air Force to push back the first flight of the rocket to April 12 from March 22. It’s unclear whether there might be further delay.
The test-firing is considered one of the final critical milestones before the rocket’s maiden mission, a demonstration flight with a Dragon spacecraft qualification unit.
The main objectives are to verify the operation of ground control systems and demonstrate flight readiness.
SpaceX holds a $1.6 billion NASA contract to launch 15 Falcon 9 flights – three flight tests and 12 missions to deliver cargo to the International Space Station. Contract options could increase the value of the deal to $3.1 billion.
The California-based company also holds contracts to launch commercial payloads for customers in Argentina, Canada, Europe, Israel and the U.S.
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