The U.S.-European Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite spacecraft would have to wait at least 11 additional days from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base before launching orbit.
NASA and SpaceX has just decided to postpone the ocean-mapping spacecraft launch after issues with the Falcon 9 rocket line that halted a GPS satellite launch for the US Air Force.
In a press conference, NASA launch services program director Tim Dunn said SpaceX focused on fixing a problem with the rocket gas generator responsible for the GPS satellite launch abort.
Update: We now are targeting Saturday, Nov. 21, for the launch of the U.S.-European Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich ocean-monitoring satellite on a Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. 1/3 pic.twitter.com/73x8wlYjXh — Kathy Lueders (@KathyLueders) November 3, 2020
The wait would be used by SpaceX to complete Merlin engine testing
The most recent NASA update clarified that SpaceX is using the modification to complete the Falcon 9 inspections and complete the Merlin engine checking.
Follow live discussions: Sea-level rise and Sentinel-6: Ahead of the impending launch of the Copernicus Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite, join us for a live discussion on the spaceborne technology that measures sea-level rise and how this… https://t.co/C1s6Nvf7QI pic.twitter.com/ln1u7IaOk3 — Michael Honey (@michaelhoney_) November 2, 2020
"After completing engine testing and inspections, teams from NASA and SpaceX have determined that two engines on the Sentinel-6 rocket's first stage would need to be replaced to ensure optimal performance during launch," said the said agency.
NASA added that, due to the progressive work to introduce the engine update, all engine hardware replacements would be done next week.
Sentinel-6 is expected to join the fast-growing network of Earth observation satellites tracking the global warming of our world. Some of the new mission's principal achievements provided better knowledge of the origins of water rise and the motions of deep ocean currents.
Crew-1 encountered a strange issue.
In the meantime, SpaceX said earlier that Crew-1 faced an odd issue concerning red nail-polish content. According to Business Insider's recent report, the bright-red residue had blocked a valve that acts as a regulator, releasing the fuel and ignition fluid.
The red material was a masking lacquer, said Hans Koenigsmann, SpaceX's vice president of flight reliability. It is used to cover sensitive areas of the spacecraft.
A third-party manufacturer has also reported that other parts of the rocket are subject to corrosion-resistant treatment. As the lacquer was presumably discarded once the procedure was completed, the complications could not have arisen.
Strange issue not the first time
This is not the first time a launch has gone horribly wrong due to problems with one of SpaceX vendors.
After liftoff, a Falcon 9 rocket holding a resupply cargo vessel bound for the space station crashed in June 2015. The subsequent inquiry showed that a pressurized helium vessel came loose in flight after a substandard part on a steel rod fell off.
Elon Musk, CEO and designer of SpaceX, said the rod came from an outside vendor, while NASA knocked SpaceX for not sufficiently vetting the materials.
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