SpaceX

SpaceX ( Space Exploration Technologies Corporation ) is a US-based company which is active in the private space industry. After initial failures, the company developed within a few years become a significant participant in the COTS program to ensure the supply of the International Space Station after the space shuttle program. In addition, commercial transport of payloads are offered in orbit.

SpaceX is currently the world's only company that is able to safely land a spacecraft with a greater payload back to Earth. All other unmanned space transporter ( private or state ) burn up in the Earth's atmosphere and thus serve as a disposal for waste and unneeded items. Only the manned Soyuz spacecraft can next to the Astronauts 100 kg payload to return to the surface.

History

SpaceX was founded in June 2002 by entrepreneur Elon Musk, who had earned the two Internet companies Zip2 and PayPal several hundred million dollars and established a part of SpaceX.

The company started the development of the rocket with about 30 employees and employed approximately 130 employees in June 2005. Many parts of the Falcon missile, such as the two rocket motors ( Merlin and Kestrel ) for the first and the second stage have been newly developed.

Starts place both from Vandenberg Air Force Base as well as the geographically very convenient for reaching the orbit island Omelek in Kwajalein Atoll; Since October 2010, the company also uses Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral.

The first successful launch of a Falcon 1 took place on 28 September 2008, at 23:15 UTC, were needed four countdown. SpaceX Falcon 1 thus represents the first fully privately developed liquid fuel rocket to reach orbit.

In December 2008, a contract between SpaceX and NASA over 1.6 billion U.S. dollars for twelve supply transportation to the International Space Station ISS was signed. In this case, a total of 20 tons of cargo are delivered with Falcon 9 rocket to the ISS.

Facilities

Headquarters

In Hawthorne (California ) is not only the corporate headquarters of the company. Here, extensive development and manufacturing facilities are located. In addition, it houses the flight control center for all SpaceX missions.

Launch facilities

The launch of Falcon 9 rockets carried out by specially converted Launch Complex 40 of the Cape Canaveral AFS or from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Here, the company also has hangars, where the finished delivered rocket stages are put together before starting.

From the Kwajalein Missile Range on Omelek (Marshall Islands) the date five Falcon 1 rockets were launched.

Furthermore, building a new launch pad for the new high performance rocket Falcon Heavy on the grounds of Vandenberg Air Force Base date.

Missile test equipment

In McGregor (Texas ) SpaceX operates since 2003 a facility for testing rocket engines and thrusters. Here you can find also a lot of the development work instead of in terms of engine technology.

Falcon 1

The first test flight of the lightweight Falcon 1 rocket took place after repeated launch delays on 24 March 2006 in September 2004, but ended with the crash of the rocket due to a fuel leak. Then convened a commission of inquiry set up by SpaceX and the U.S. Department of Defense. In the second test flight on 21 March 2007, the rocket reached an altitude of 300 kilometers. The second rocket stage but probably collided with the first-stage blown off, so that the rocket began to tumble out of control. This led, among other things, to abort the live broadcast via webcast. According to SpaceX, the disturbed telemetry data could be subsequently restored extensively. The senior rushed back into the Earth's atmosphere. The third test flight of a Falcon 1 rocket hit 3 August 2008 failed again. The start was at first as expected, but at the stage separation problems occurred, and the rocket went out of control. The fourth flight 28 September 2008 was successful. Here, the same type of engine ( Merlin C ) was used as the previous flight. By correcting the error in staging the Falcon 1 could suspend its 165 kg payload severe test in a 644 km high orbit. On 14 July 2009 Falcon 1 was used with the start of the Malaysian satellite RazakSat first time commercially.

Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy

In addition, the much larger model Falcon 9 have been developed. Originally it was planned with the Falcon 5 is another model whose development was discontinued temporarily in favor of the larger Falcon 9. If necessary, continue to be implemented as a scaled-down 5 Falcon 9 is a Falcon, where at the first stage five instead of nine engines are then mounted and the tank is filled only partially. The rocket, with its nine engines, should be manageable even with a engine failure in each flight phase of the stage.

In 2006, SpaceX in the competition NASA to private supply the ISS Commercial Orbital Transportation Services part and was one of the winners. In collaboration with NASA, the further development and testing of the Falcon 9 and Dragon was the spaceship.

Took place on June 4, 2010 after many delays from Cape Canaveral ( LC40 ) from the successful maiden flight of the Falcon 9 it reached Earth orbit and carried out the separation of the first stage.

The planned Falcon 9 Heavy three first stage are combined. The two externally mounted stage pump during flight parts of their tank contents into the central level in order to make the two outer levels of a shorter focal length and can be dropped, while the central level still has enough fuel and at a lower total mass can continue working. Added to this is still an upper school. At the start of the Falcon 9 Heavy, all 27 rocket engines are fired simultaneously. According to SpaceX, they would be the most powerful rocket since the Saturn V moon rocket Critics note, however, that the Soviet Energia rocket missing in the comparison.

With Intelsat, the first contract on a commercial flight with Falcon 9 Heavy has already been signed.

Dragon

Also on their own - but with NASA support - the Dragon capsule was designed, constructed and tested. On 8 December 2010, launched the first Dragon capsule on a Falcon 9 to a space flight and splashed down after about 3 hours in the Pacific Ocean. So that the capability has been demonstrated not only to start the capsule, but also to land. The capsule is thus the only all-cargo system, which is able to accommodate larger payloads from the ISS and return to Earth. The previous cargo systems (ATV, HTV and Progress) burn up on their way back into the atmosphere.

From 22 until 31 May 2012 took place the first flight of the Dragon spacecraft to the ISS on COTS - 2 mission. The total 9 -day flight included numerous test maneuvers. The ship transported 520 kg cargo to the ISS and ended up with more than 600 kg of unneeded equipment back on Earth.

Since October 2012, regular flights instead to supply the ISS. It is also planned to use the spacecraft after appropriate testing for the transport of astronauts.

Grasshopper

SpaceX experimenting with the goal of enabling the vertical landing rockets. The aim is to re-use parts of the missile, and thus significantly reducing costs. To this end, the constructed SpaceX test rocket Grasshopper (German grasshopper ) based on the 33.5 meter high first stage of the Falcon 9, was mounted on the one instead of the usual 9 engines. This technology is used Rakententriebwerk Merlin 1D. The machine is based on four landing legs of steel and aluminum, which are equipped with hydraulic dampers.

Until October 7, 2013 eight test flights were performed. This Grasshopper reached a maximum height of 744 m before the rocket landed vertically again.