On September 1, Falcon 9 was supposed to have launched a satellite costing $195 million into orbit. After extensive investigations, engineers have finally determined the SpaceX explosion cause.
SpaceX engineers now believe that the mishap that happened on Cape Canaveral Airforce Base was triggered by a failure in one of the high-pressure helium tanks.
These tanks are used to pressurize the second stage liquid oxygen tank. The Falcon 9's rocket system uses super cooled liquid oxygen and RP-1 kerosene fuel to boost the ascent of the rocket.
In order to push the propellants into the engine of the rocket, the Falcon 9 uses pressurized helium stored in aluminum bottles.
These bottles or otherwise known as composite overwrap pressure vessels or COPVs are submerged in cold liquid oxygen and chilled kerosene inside the propellant tanks.
SpaceX chills the propellant to around minus 340 degrees, but liquid oxygen has a temperature of a minus 298 degrees Fahrenheit.
Investigators now believe that the extremely low temperatures may have caused the liquid oxygen to solidify.
As the tank was pressurized, trapped oxygen pushing against the carbon fiber overwrap likely have caused friction leading to an ignition causing the massive explosion of the rocket which was witnessed by the whole world, according to a report by CBS News.
With the SpaceX explosion cause now revealed, engineers are setting plans to resume flights as early as next week. The company is aiming for January 8.
The flight will be launched in Vandenberg Air Force Base, although it still needs to be approved by the Federal Aviation Administration.
Marcos Caceres, a senior space analyst for the Teal Group states that SpaceX is being extra cautious this time around. It seems that the company is not rushing ahead, which is a good thing according to him in a report by US News.
