Sign In
Search
Space

SpaceX Investigation Finds Failed Strut Caused Falcon 9 Explosion

Valerie Insinna
SHARE:
SpaceX Investigation Finds Failed Strut Caused Falcon 9 Explosion

The failed launch this June of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket (Defense Daily, June 29) was likely caused by a strut in the second stage liquid oxygen tank, which broke free during flight, said the company’s CEO and chief rocket designer Elon Musk. After the strut failed, the highly-pressurized helium bottle it was securing shot to the top of the tank at high speed, leading to the rocket explosion just two minutes after launch.The stainless steel strut was designed to handle…

Subscriber-only content. Please log in below.

Not a subscriber or registered user yet?

Please contact us at clientservices@accessintel.com or call us at 888-707-5814 (Monday – Thursday 9:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. and Friday 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. ET.), to start a free trial, get pricing information, order a reprint, or post an article link on your website.

Recommended

Air Force

Air Force Leadership And AETC Consult On Uses For Future F-35As Delivered Without Radars

Advanced / Transformational Technology

Navy Seeks Vendor-Neutral USV Maintenance Framework

Army

Army Picks GM Defense, Ford, BC Customs For ISV-Heavy Prototyping Competition

Business/Financial

HII Adds Outsourcing To Amphib Construction; Australian Official Visits

Trending

Boeing Divesting Stake In Joint Venture With Quantum Expertise
Ainsworth: Launch of 500 U.S. Space Force Satellites Planned By End Of 2027
Electra Selects Ohio Site To Produce Dual-Use Hybrid-Electric Aircraft
Northrop Grumman To Produce SRMs For PAC-3 Missiles As Second Source
Space Force Boosts Ceiling For NSSL Phase 3, Lane 1 By $11.4 Billion

Congress Updates

Congress

U.S. Fighter Fleet Will Expand By 2040 But More Stealth Aircraft Will Mean Less Availability, CBO Says

The number of fighter aircraft in the U.S. military inventory will decline over the next few years before expanding to a greater number than currently, but their availability for operational […]

Congress

White House Details ‘Concerns’ With Shipbuilding, Spaced-Based Interceptor Oversight In House’s NDAA

The White House has detailed “a number of concerns” with the newly-passed House version of the next defense policy bill, to include the legislation’s limits on procuring Navy ships built […]

Congress

House Narrowly Votes To Pass $1.15 Trillion FY ‘27 NDAA, Blueprint For Reconciliation 3.0

The House on Wednesday narrowly voted to pass its $1.15 trillion version of the fiscal year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and a blueprint for a third reconciliation bill […]

Congress

Senate Appropriators Press On Supplemental’s Requests Beyond Iran Scope, Hegseth Urges Full Funding

Senate appropriators have pressed Pentagon leadership on the decision to include funds in the Iran war supplemental request for items beyond the current military operation, while Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth […]

The Force Multipliers

Force Multipliers

Michael Harrison – SANS Institute

Force Multipliers

Michael DiOrio – Dataminr

Force Multipliers

Arne Brinck – Dark Wolf Solutions

Force Multipliers

Jags Kandasamy – Latent AI

Job Feed

Post a Job // Post a Resume