SpaceX faces test before launching astronauts
Elon Musk founded SpaceX with the intention of one day sending humans to space.
Eighteen years later, the Hawthorne company has launched commercial satellites, astronaut supplies, sensitive government payloads and even a Tesla Roadster. But not humans. Yet.
Only one major test now stands between SpaceX and its long-awaited plan to ferry NASA astronauts to and from the International Space Station. On Saturday morning, the company is scheduled to test the inflight abort capabilities of its Crew Dragon spacecraft. Shortly after launch, the capsule’s escape system should activate, blasting the spacecraft away from the rocket as it would in an emergency. Then, the capsule is supposed to float down under parachutes to the Atlantic Ocean.
No humans will be aboard, though the test is intended to prove that the capsule can keep astronauts safe in a dire situation.
“You can’t fully test a launch system until you get it completely off the ground,” said Laura Forczyk, owner of consulting firm Astralytical. The test will be “a big proof that yes, commercial vehicles can do it.”
Since the beginning of the U.S. space program, NASA has owned the crafts that carried humans to space. Contractors built the Saturn V rockets that propelled humans to the moon and the space shuttles that carried crews to the space station, but they did so with explicit direction from NASA.
SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule is different.
In 2014, SpaceX and Boeing Co. were awarded contracts worth a total of $6.8 billion to each build a capsule to take NASA astronauts to the space station. Under the terms of the contract, the companies own the spacecraft they develop; NASA simply pays for the astronauts’ rides, as well as part of the capsule development. The capsules must still be certified by NASA to ensure they meet safety requirements, but there is more room for the companies to innovate on the design and engineering.
The public-private partnership has not always been a smooth ride. Both SpaceX and Boeing are years behind schedule _ the original goal was to launch NASA astronauts by 2017 _ and each has faced setbacks during development.
In April, a SpaceX Crew
Dragon capsule exploded on the ground during a test, just a month after that craft flew to the space station and back without a crew. After a three-month investigation, SpaceX found that a leaky valve in the capsule’s propulsion system probably led to its destruction. The company said it has since replaced those valves with more resilient parts.
In 2018, a propellant leak caused a fire that damaged one of Boeing’s test capsules. And during a test flight last month, a faulty timer on Boeing’s Starliner astronaut capsule prevented the uncrewed craft from reaching the correct orbit to dock with the space station, cutting short the planned mission. NASA and Boeing have launched a joint investigation into what went wrong.
In addition to developmental challenges, the program has also faced federal budget cuts, which slowed funding and progress. That has all contributed to looming uncertainty about U.S. access to the space station.
The U.S. has paid Russia to transport its astronauts to space since 2011, when the shuttle was retired. As SpaceX and Boeing’s capsule programs experienced delay after delay, the U.S. has had to buy additional seats on the Russian Soyuz spacecraft.
The nation’s booking of Soyuz seats extends through October. If neither SpaceX nor Boeing has a capsule ready for regular service by then, the U.S. may have to buy more seats from Russia, which would require congressional approval.