By Brian Orlotti
On May 11th, the SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket launched and landed successfully at the Kennedy Space Centre. The launch marks another milestone for the commercial space industry, allowing SpaceX and its customers to greatly up the tempo of launches.
The Falcon 9 Block 5’s first flight was actually delayed by a day, after a technical issue triggered an automatic abort with less than a minute remaining before launch on May 10th. Fortunately, no issues marred the rescheduled launch, allowing the Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket to deliver its payload to orbit.
As outlined in the May 11th, 2018 The Verge post, "With the landing of SpaceX’s powerful new Falcon 9, a new era of rocket reusability takes off," SpaceX CEO Elon Musk admitted to some nervousness:
The Falcon 9 Block 5 incorporates upgrades meant to satisfy both NASA Commercial Crew program as well as US military launch requirements. These include:
The success of the Falcon 9 Block 5 is another step towards the bright future envisioned by Musk, Jeff Bezos and others; a vision of millions of humans living and working in space.
On May 11th, the SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket launched and landed successfully at the Kennedy Space Centre. The launch marks another milestone for the commercial space industry, allowing SpaceX and its customers to greatly up the tempo of launches.
The Falcon 9 Block 5’s first flight was actually delayed by a day, after a technical issue triggered an automatic abort with less than a minute remaining before launch on May 10th. Fortunately, no issues marred the rescheduled launch, allowing the Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket to deliver its payload to orbit.
As outlined in the May 11th, 2018 The Verge post, "With the landing of SpaceX’s powerful new Falcon 9, a new era of rocket reusability takes off," SpaceX CEO Elon Musk admitted to some nervousness:
The reason that it’s so hard to make an orbital rocket work is that your passing grade is 100 percent. And you can’t fully and properly test an orbital rocket until it launches, because you cannot recreate those conditions on Earth… Man, anyway, I’m stressed.The Block 5’s first payload was Bangabandhu 1, a Bangladeshi communications satellite designed and built by Thales Alenia Space. Bangabandhu 1 is Bangladesh’s first geostationary communications satellite, providing Internet access across the country as well as India, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, and Indonesia. The $248 million USD satellite was financed via a loan from HSBC Holdings plc.
The Falcon 9 Block 5 incorporates upgrades meant to satisfy both NASA Commercial Crew program as well as US military launch requirements. These include:
- Uprated engines enabling 7-10% more thrust
- An improved flight control system that lowers landing fuel requirements
- A reusable heat shield at the rocket’s base to protect the engines and plumbing
- More temperature-resistant cast and machined titanium grid fins
- A thermal protection coating on the first stage to limit damage from re-entry heating
- Redesigned and requalified valves for greater durability
- A set of retractable landing legs for rapid recovery and shipping
The success of the Falcon 9 Block 5 is another step towards the bright future envisioned by Musk, Jeff Bezos and others; a vision of millions of humans living and working in space.
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| Brian Orlotti. |
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Brian Orlotti is a regular contributor to the Commercial Space blog.
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