In 2009, NASA’s Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO) failed to reach orbit after the rocket it was riding, a Taurus XL, failed to properly deploy it. Recently, NASA finally released the results from their long and arduous investigation. They found that an aluminum manufacturer, SPI, knowingly produced sub-par aluminum for the manufacture of the fairing. They falsified certificates and test results to slip by, costing the US 700 million dollars. They recently agreed to pay 46 million dollars to settle charges, and the company is facing the possibility of never being allowed to conduct business with the government again. Now, 46 million < 700 million, but some reparation is better than none. Nothing can make up for the years of scientific progress lost to greed; no amount of money can turn back time. Hopefully, NASA will hold greater oversight of their contractors in the future.

Sources:

https://www.space.com/nasa-determines-cause-satellite-launch-failures.html

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon is experiencing some major setbacks. The first test flight of the vehicle went without hitch, but further testing of the recovered spacecraft caused some serious issues. During an April 20th test of the SuperDraco engines, the capsule violently exploded. Obviously, this isn’t a great test result for something designed to carry people to space. Humans have a general adversity to explosions. In a statement by the vice president of Build and Flight Reliability at SpaceX, it was revealed that the engines were fired twice successfully, and the capsule then exploded moments before they were fired for the third time. Ignition and firing of the engines involves a lot of valves opening and closing, so it is highly possible that a failure of one of these systems caused the explosion, although nothing will be certain until the investigation is concluded.

Crew Dragon floating into the ocean on four good parachutes during its first test flight.

However, this isn’t the only failure the program had recently. It was recently revealed before congress that SpaceX had conducted a failed “single-out” parachute test. The test, designed to ensure that the spacecraft could successfully land in event of one of four parachutes failing, ended with the capsule hitting the desert at too high a speed. The test vehicle was reportedly damaged in the incident. These setbacks are bad for the viability of the program as a whole, and will likely mean major setbacks in timing. The first manned spaceflight was scheduled as early as July, but it is no longer likely that this goal will be met. Hopefully, no further setbacks will impede the program’s progress, and the flight vehicle will finally fly with astronauts on-board.

Sources:

https://www.space.com/spacex-crew-dragon-explosion-investigation-underway.html

https://spacenews.com/crew-dragon-parachutes-failed-in-recent-test/