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SpaceX
Dragon CRS-16 spacecraft launches to the International Space Station at 1:16 p.m. EST Dec. 5, 2018, on a Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida carrying more than 5,600 pounds of research equipment, cargo and supplies on the 16th resupply mission for NASA. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com |
Ken Kremer —SpaceUpClose.com &
RocketSTEM –15 December 2018
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER,
FL – Here’s a last look at SpaceX’s last Dragon resupply launch to the International Space Station (ISS) of 2018 for
NASA, which took place last week – just ahead of SpaceX’s last planned launch in
2018, slated for Tuesday of this week, Dec. 18.
After a 24 hour delay
due to moldy mouse bars, the SpaceX mission began with the flawless blastoff of a brand new Falcon
9 rocket and Dragon CRS-16 commercial cargo freighter right on time Wednesday afternoon
December 5 as all nine first stage Merlin
1D engines roared to life and ignited with 1.8 million pounds of liftoff thrust
at 1:16 p.m. EST (1816 GMT) from Space
Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
Check out
our Space UpClose eyewitness gallery of imagery of the launch and landing as
well as prelaunch imagery taken of the Falcon 9 standing tall at pad 40 during
our media remote camera.
Click back here as the gallery grows!
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SpaceX
Dragon CRS-16 spacecraft launches to the International Space Station at 1:16 p.m. EST Dec. 5, 2018, on a Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida carrying more than 5,600 pounds of research equipment, cargo and supplies on the 16th resupply mission for NASA. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com |
2018 involves the GPS III SV01 satellite for the US Air Force slated for
blastoff on Tuesday, Dec. 18 at 9:11 a.m. EST. Weather outlook is currently 80
% GO !!
The Dec. 5 CRS-16 mission was fully successful except for
the planned landing attempt
to recover the first stage booster back on the ground minutes, which failed due
to a malfunction in a hydraulic pump required to the grid fins. But the good
news is it was safely aborted to slightly offshore at sea, avoiding any danger
to population centers or infrastructure.
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| Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com |
of the 15-story-tall booster amounted to a rare setback in rocket recycling for
SpaceX which really plays second fiddle to the overarching goal of the mission –
launching a Dragon resupply spaceship to the astronauts and cosmonauts living
and working about the million-pound Earth orbiting science laboratory.
was loaded with nearly 3 tons of critical research, hardware and supplies and
successfully delivered the cargo to the ISS for NASA when it arrived three days
later on Dec. 8.
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SpaceX Falcon 9 streaks to orbit carrying Dragon
CRS-16 resupply mission to the ISS for NASA on Dec. 5, 2018. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com |
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Stage separation after launch of SpaceX Falcon 9
carrying Dragon CRS-16 resupply mission to the ISS for NASA on Dec. 5, 2018. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com |
The plummeting booster
was spinning out of control but eventually control was regained via firings of
the Merlin 1D engines and it accomplished an unplanned emergency aborted
landing in the Atlantic Ocean, tipping over and surviving horizontally as a remarkably
intact sea worthy vessel.
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Falcon 9 1st stage booster is spinning almost
out of control and veering much farther downwards than normal during final descent. Engines finally did stabilize enough to regain control, deploy 4 landing legs and retarget for ocean landing just off shore from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, after Dec. 5, 2018 launch on SpaceX Dragon CRS-16 mission to the ISS for NASA. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com |
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Falcon 9 1st stage booster
is spinning almost out of control during final descent until engines stabilize enough to regain control, deploy 4 landing legs and retarget for ocean landing just off shore from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, after Dec. 5, 2018 launch on SpaceX Dragon CRS-16 mission to the ISS for NASA. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com |
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Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com
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arrived into Port Canaveral two days later when it was towed into port by the tugboat
Eagle.
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SpaceX
Falcon 9 floats into Port Canaveral on 7 Dec. 2018 towed by tugboats crews after sea ditch landing following successful Dragon cargo launch for NASA to ISS on 5 Dec. 2018. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com
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UpClose articles and imagery detailing the Dragon’s journey to space and the
Falcon 9s floating saga back to Port Canaveral.
Watch my commentary about the successful launch
and ‘successful failure’ of the retargeted aborted landing here at Fox 35 News Orlando, FL:
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Dr Ken Kremer/Space UpClose
interviewed by Fox 35 News Orlando about the successful SpaceX Dragon mission launch and the landing failure. |
The prior CRS-15 resupply flight successfully flew in June
from pad 40.
The two stage Falcon 9/Dragon rocket stands
about 213-feet (65-meters) tall.
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SpaceX Falcon 9 streaks to orbit carrying Dragon
CRS-16 resupply mission to the ISS for NASA on Dec. 5, 2018. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com |
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SpaceX Falcon 9 streaks to orbit carrying Dragon
CRS-16 resupply mission to the ISS for NASA on Dec. 5, 2018. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com |
To date SpaceX has successfully landed 32 1st stage
rockets by land and by sea. And they have reused 17 of those 15 story tall boosters
since the first relaunch in March 2017 relaunch for SES.
CRS-16 marks the 20th flight overall for SpaceX
in 2018 and the 4th ISS resupply mission for NASA in 2018.
SpaceX was awarded a $3.04
Billion contract from NASA to launch 20 Dragon cargo missions to the orbiting outpost
through 2019 under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) agreement.
Watch for Ken’s continuing
onsite coverage of NASA, SpaceX, ULA, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman
and more space and mission reports direct from the Kennedy Space Center, Cape
Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida and Wallops Flight Facility, Virginia.
Stay tuned here for Ken’s continuing Earth and Planetary science
and human spaceflight news: www.kenkremer.com –www.spaceupclose.com – twitter
@ken_kremer – email: ken at kenkremer.com
journalist and photographer based in the KSC area.
Ken’s photos are for sale and he is available for lectures and outreach events
Learn more about the upcoming/recent SpaceX Falcon 9/USAF GPS 3-01, SpaceX Falcon 9/CRS-16
launch to ISS, NASA missions, ULA Atlas
& Delta launches, SpySats and more at Ken’s upcoming outreach events at Quality Inn Kennedy Space Center, Titusville,
FL, evenings:
Dec
17: “SpaceX Dragon CRS-16
resupply launch to ISS, SpaceX Falcon GPS 3-01, SpaceX Falcon Heavy &
Falcon 9 launches, upcoming SpaceX Falcon 9 USAF GP3 3-01, NRO & USAF
Spysats, SLS, Orion, Boeing and SpaceX Commercial crew capsules, OSIRIS-Rex,
Juno at Jupiter, InSight Mars lander, Curiosity and Opportunity explore Mars,
NH at Pluto, Kuiper Belt and more,” Kennedy Space Center Quality Inn, Titusville,
FL, evenings. Photos for sale
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| SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket poised for liftoff on Dragon CRS-16 cargo ship mission to the ISS from Space Launch Complex-40 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, FL, on Dec. 5, 2018 at 1:16 pm EST. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com |
