Falcon 1
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Falcon 1 rocket in front of the FAA building in Washington DC. |
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| Fact sheet | ||
|---|---|---|
| Function | Orbital launch vehicle | |
| Manufacturer | SpaceX | |
| Country of origin | USA | |
| Size | ||
| Height | 21.3 m (70 ft) | |
| Diameter | 1.7 m (5.5 ft) | |
| Mass | 27,200 kg (60,000 lb) | |
| Stages | 2 | |
| Capacity | ||
| Payload to LEO | 670 kg (1480 lb) | |
| Payload to SSO |
430 kg (990 lb) | |
| Launch History | ||
| Status | Active | |
| Launch Sites | Omelek Island SLC-3W Vandenberg AFB LC-36 Cape Canaveral |
|
| Total launches | 1 | |
| Failures | 1 | |
| Maiden flight | March 24, 2006 22:30 GMT |
|
| First Stage | ||
| Engines | 1 SpaceX Merlin | |
| Thrust | 343 kN (77,000 lbf) | |
| Specific Impulse | 255 s (sea level) (2.6 kN·s/kg) |
|
| Burn time | 169 seconds | |
| Fuel | RP-1/LOX | |
| Second Stage | ||
| Engines | 1 SpaceX Kestrel | |
| Thrust | 31 kN (7,000 lbf) | |
| Specific Impulse | 327 s (vacuum) (3.2 kN·s/kg)) |
|
| Burn time | 378 seconds | |
| Fuel | RP-1/LOX | |
The Falcon 1 is a partially reusable launch system, designed and manufactured by SpaceX to provide commercial launch-to-space services. The two-stage-to-orbit rocket uses Lox/RP-1 for both stages, the first powered by a single Merlin engine and the second powered by a single Kestrel engine.
It is the world's first privately funded and developed liquid-fueled orbital launch vehicle, and is currently priced at US$6.7 million.
Contents |
[edit] Design
The Falcon 1 is designed to minimize price per launch for low-Earth-orbit satellites. It is also intended to verify components and structural design concepts that will be reused in the Falcon 5. The first stage returns by parachute to a water landing and is recovered for reuse, while the second stage is not reusable.
[edit] First stage
The first stage is made from friction-stir-welded aluminum alloy. It employs a common bulkhead between the LOX and RP-1 tanks, as well as flight pressure stabilization. It can be transported safely without pressurization (like the heavier Delta II isogrid design) but gains additional strength when pressurized for flight (like the Atlas II, which cannot be transported unpressurized). The resulting design has the highest mass fraction of any current first stage. The parachute system, built by Irvin Parachute Corporation, uses a high-speed drogue chute and a main chute. Due to problems with LOX boil-off during the launch of the first vehicle, future vehicles are expected to have foam insulation applied to the exterior of the LOX tank.
Until SpaceX gains experience with reusing the first stage, the quoted price presupposes that no reuse of the first stage is taking place. If and when the recycling process is perfected, the launch price may be expected to drop.
[edit] Second stage
The second stage tanks are built with a cryogenic-compatible aluminum–lithium alloy. The helium pressurization system pumps propellant to the engine, supplies pressurized gas for the attitude control thrusters, and is used for zero-g propellant accumulation prior to engine restart. The pressure tanks are made by Arde corporation and are the same as those used in the Delta IV. They consist of an inconel shell wrapped by a composite.
[edit] Launch sequence
 |
| Launch sequence (maiden flight example); time scale is in seconds. |
The main engine is ignited and throttled to full power while the launcher is restrained and all systems are verified by the flight computer. If the systems are operating correctly, the rocket is released and clears the tower in about seven seconds. First-stage burn lasts about 2:49 minutes. Stage separation is accomplished with explosive bolts and a pneumatically actuated pusher system. See the launch sequence timeline below for more details.
[edit] Launch sites
The Falcon 1 can be launched from five different sites, with the maiden flight lifting off from Kwajalein and the second flight scheduled for Vandenberg.
- Vandenberg Air Force Base, Pad 3W
- Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Launch Complex 36
- Kwajalein Atoll (Omelek Island), part of the Reagan Test Site
- Kodiak Island
- Wallops Island
[edit] First flight failure
The date for the maiden flight of the Falcon 1 had been postponed several times for a number of reasons, including engine problems and being forced by Vandenberg to change launch locations due to delays in the launch of a Titan IV rocket. The maiden flight was planned for Saturday, 26 November 2005, from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands carrying a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency payload, but was postponed until mid-December. The payload was the United States Air Force Academy’s FalconSAT–2, which would have measured space plasma phenomena.
During the launch attempt of 19 December 2005, a faulty valve caused a vacuum condition in the first stage, which got sucked inward and was therefore structurally damaged. A decision was made to replace the first stage for this launch and repair the damaged stage for later reuse.
The new target date for the launch was set for 10 February 2006 with a static firing countdown rehearsal scheduled for the day before. However, project managers were unsatisfied with the results of that test and decided to lower the vehicle for closer inspection. Launch on the maiden flight took place on Saturday 25 March 2006 at 09:30 local time (22:30 UTC, Friday 24 March 2006).
The vehicle had a noticeable rolling motion, as shown on the video before the feed was lost, rocking back and forth a bit, and then at T+26 seconds rapidly pitched over. The rocket impacted the ocean, apparently on its side, at about T+41 seconds.
The first official statement from Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX read:
- "We had a successful liftoff and Falcon made it well clear of the launch pad, but unfortunately the vehicle was lost later in the first stage burn. More information will be posted once we have had time to analyze the problem."
On March 24, Space X's website for the official maiden voyage of Falcon 1 said, "Early insights from investigators examining Friday's failed launch of the first SpaceX Falcon 1 rocket suggest a fuel leak triggered a fire that ultimately brought down the booster", the company's founder said today.
The launch vehicle crashed onto a dead reef located about 250 feet from the launch site. During the impact the FalconSAT–2 payload separated from the booster, was thrown high into the air, and then crashed through the roof of a machining room on the island. Reports of damage to the payload range from slight to significant.[1]
At the National Space Symposium, on 5 April 2006, Elon Musk reported that a pad processing error was seemingly responsible for allowing the fuel leak to take place. The fuel leak was small in volume, started 4 minutes prior to engine ignition, but could have been prevented if loosening of a small fuel pipe fitting required by work on an avionics box the previous night had been correctly retightened. The leak could also have been spotted during the countdown if the proper measurements had been monitored, according to SpaceX's founder.[2]
An investigation by a DARPA review board later laid blame for the failure on a broken nut, rather than an improperly tightened one. The locking wire on the nut was still in place, indicating that it had been properly tightened. Instead, corrosion caused the nut to crack. Investigators do not know what caused the aluminum nut to corrode, but suspect either galvanic corrosion between the nut and the steel pipe, or a scratch in the nut's anodized coating combined with the warm, humid air at the launch site. On future flights aluminum nuts will be replaced with stainless steel ones.[3]
While Musk said in November 2005 that he would not be deterred by the failure of the first launch attempt, he added "if we have three significant failures, then we probably don't know what we are doing. I question whether anyone would want to launch on us if we had three significant failures... We would probably exit the business." [4]
[edit] Further missions
The second mission is scheduled to launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base carrying a Naval Research Laboratory Tacsat and a Space Services Incorporated space burial payload (which will include remains of James Doohan, Gordon Cooper, and others). This was intended to be the original maiden flight, but delays in a Titan IV launch from the Vandenberg complex had a knock-on effect to SpaceX.
[edit] Launch log
| Date & Time | Flight | Payload | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24 March 2006 at 22:30 UTC (25 March 09:30 local) |
1 | FalconSat–2 | Failure at T+25 seconds loss of vehicle; payload recovered |
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "Someone's looking out for that satellite…", Kwajalein Atoll and Rockets, 25 March 2006.
- ^ "Pad Processing Error Doomed Falcon 1", Space.com, 6 April 2006.
- ^ "Falcon 1 Failure Traced to a Busted Nut", Space.com, 19 July 2006.
- ^ "Launch could lead to new age of tourism", San Francisco Chronicle, 25 Nov 2005.
