Shutdown means SpaceX can't test its Falcon Heavy rocket, creating further delays
Source: The Verge
Shutdown means SpaceX can’t test its Falcon Heavy rocket, creating further delays
The company needs Air Force support
By Loren Grush Jan 22, 2018, 7:30am EST
As long as the government shutdown continues, SpaceX won’t be able to test fire the company’s new Falcon Heavy rocket. The company needs support from the US Air Force to do the test, but too many personnel are furloughed and cannot help SpaceX conduct the firing. And that means the company can’t yet set a definitive launch date for the Falcon Heavy’s first flight, which was targeted for the end of January.
The Falcon Heavy is supposed to fly from a historic site at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Cape Canaveral Florida, called LC-39A. It’s the same pad that was used to launch the Apollo missions to the Moon, as well as numerous Space Shuttle flights. And right now, SpaceX is gearing up to do an important test at the site called a static fire. It involves firing up all 27 engines on the Falcon Heavy while the vehicle is on the launchpad to go through the important first steps of flight, such as loading propellant and engine ignition. The static fire should tell SpaceX whether or not the rocket is ready to fly, and if the test is deemed a success, the company will likely set a target launch date.
However, it looks like that test will have to wait until the government shutdown is over. Because of the pad’s location, SpaceX relies on support from the Air Force’s 45th Space Wing, which oversees launches and operations at both KSC and the nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The 45th Space Wing is responsible for making sure people on the ground are safe during launches and tests, for instance.
But the 45th says it can’t do these crucial tasks during the shutdown. “Due to the shutdown removing key members of the civilian workforce, the 45th Space Wing will not be able to support commercial static fires taking place on KSC,” a spokesperson for the 45th Space Wing said in a statement to The Verge. “Without our civilian workforce, the 45th SW is unable to support launch operations as well.”
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Read more: https://www.theverge.com/2018/1/22/16918464/spacex-falcon-heavy-rocket-static-fire-delayed-shutdown
