Rocket Lab's "We Will Never Desert You" Launch Ends in Failure; SpaceX Set to Launch Booster for 17th Time

 

Rocket Lab's "We Will Never Desert You" Launch Ends in Failure; SpaceX Set to Launch Booster for 17th Time

During the week spanning from September 18 to September 24, the space industry witnessed three orbital launches, all originating from United States-based aerospace companies. The first event featured Rocket Lab's ninth Electron launch of 2023, designated as the "We Will Never Desert You" mission. Unfortunately, this mission encountered a failure during staging.

Subsequently, SpaceX planned to launch its Starlink Group 6-17 mission from Space Launch Complex (SLC-40). Later in the week, the same launch site would see the launch of another Starlink mission known as Starlink Group 6-18.

These launches marked the 152nd to 154th space launches in 2023. At this pace, the world was on track to exceed 210 launches by year-end, setting a new record. Notably, SpaceX accounted for over 40% of these launches, with these two Falcon launches marking its 66th and 67th Falcon flights in 2023.

Rocket Lab's Electron/Curie "We Will Never Desert You" Mission

On September 19, 2023, at 06:56 UTC, Rocket Lab initiated the "We Will Never Desert You" mission from Launch Complex 1 on New Zealand's Mahia Peninsula. A brief hold was imposed due to solar weather, but once launched, an anomaly occurred during staging, suggesting an issue with second-stage ignition. Unfortunately, no further details were provided regarding the anomaly.

The mission was intended for Capella Space, an American space technology company specializing in operating commercial synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery satellites in low-Earth orbit (LEO). This marked Rocket Lab's third mission for Capella in 2023 and the second launch in a multi-launch contract comprising four missions aimed at deploying Capella's new Acadia satellites into LEO.

The Acadia satellite on this mission weighed approximately 160 kilograms and joined an existing fleet of eleven Capella satellites in a circular orbit at roughly 635 kilometers with a 53-degree inclination. These satellites aimed to provide high-quality, high-resolution SAR imagery capable of functioning in all-weather conditions, offering 24/7 Earth imaging. The next-gen Acadia satellites boasted enhanced features for faster data transmission and superior image quality, accessible through Capella's automated ordering and delivery platform.

Rocket Lab's Electron rocket, a two-stage vehicle standing at 17 meters tall with a 1.2-meter diameter, had a liftoff mass of approximately 12,000 kilograms and could deliver payloads of up to 300 kilograms to LEO. Its first stage, standing at 12.1 meters, housed nine Rutherford engines running on rocket propellant 1 (RP-1) and liquid oxygen (LOX), delivered to the main combustion chamber by an electric turbopump. This unique design allowed for rapid production and assembly, making Electron the second most frequently launched rocket in the United States. "We Will Never Desert You" marked Electron's ninth mission in 2023, achieving Rocket Lab's long-standing goal of a monthly Electron launch.

Notably, Rocket Lab did not attempt to recover the first stage of Electron for this mission, following the successful recovery of the stage on its previous mission, "We Love The Nightlife." The reason for skipping recovery on this mission remained undisclosed, and further investigation was required before the next launch.

SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 Starlink Group 6-17

SpaceX scheduled its Starlink Group 6-17 mission for September 19, 2023, at 10:47 PM EDT (02:47 UTC on September 20). This mission aimed to deploy 22 Starlink v2 Mini satellites into a LEO orbit, approximately 284 by 293 kilometers with a 53.00-degree inclination. This launch would bring the total number of Starlink satellites in orbit to 5,135, with 4,786 still operational.

SpaceX had been actively collaborating with the astronomy community to reduce the impact of satellite constellations on the night sky. They implemented in-house dielectric mirrors on the satellites' surfaces and extremely dark black paint on angled surfaces to minimize reflected light towards the Earth. Additionally, SpaceX made these brightness mitigation measures available to other satellite operators at a reasonable cost.

The first stage supporting this mission was set to make history as the first booster to launch for the 17th time. It had previously supported several missions, including GPS III SV03, Turksat 5A, Transporter-2, Galaxy 33 and 34, Transporter-6, and 11 Starlink missions. SpaceX's plan was to retire Falcon 9 first stages after 20 flights, though this number might be extended.

After launch, the first stage would attempt to land on SpaceX's autonomous spaceport drone ship, A Shortfall of Gravitas. This ship had been transported downrange by "Doug," marking the first mission since Starlink Group 6-10 to utilize this multi-purpose recovery vessel. Following the launch, Doug would attempt to recover both fairing halves, with both the booster and fairing halves being flight-proven.

SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 Starlink Group 6-18

To conclude the week, SpaceX scheduled another Starlink mission to launch from SLC-40 on September 23 at 8:06 PM EDT (00:03 UTC on September 24). This mission planned to send an additional 22 Starlink v2 Mini satellites into a LEO orbit, approximately 284 by 294 kilometers. The identity of the booster supporting this mission remained undisclosed, but after liftoff, it would attempt to land on the "Just Read the Instructions" drone ship.