SpaceX Polaris Dawn Delayed: Falcon 9 Grounded by FAA After Recent Explosion

SpaceX's Polaris Dawn launch which was rescheduled for Wednesday will see a further delay, and this timeline remains indefinite as the US Federal Aviation Authority recently grounded the Falcon 9. This came after a recent accident with the Falcon 9 where it exploded after landing, fresh from a supposed historic mission for SpaceX following its latest batch of Starlink orbit delivery.

For now, SpaceX and its Falcon 9 will remain grounded as the FAA is asking for an incident report from the company, which also needs to ensure other rocket's safety before its next launch.

SpaceX Polaris Dawn Mission Delayed After Falcon 9 Mishap

Shortly after the Polaris Program and SpaceX announced that the Tuesday launch of the Polaris Dawn mission was delayed, it was followed by an accident with SpaceX's Falcon 9.

The initial reason for SpaceX's delay of the Polaris mission's launch was because of a ground-based issue, it was later followed by the company's decision to scrub the Wednesday launch as well. Its second reason was because of bad weather in Florida in five days, and it is the anticipated return date of the Polaris Dawn mission after their historic campaign.

The FAA's recent statement is now requiring SpaceX to submit a full report on the incident, with an investigation set to take place all while Falcon 9 remains grounded. It also means that Polaris Dawn would have to wait for the FAA's approval for the first-stage rocket to return to flight.

Falcon 9 Exploded After Landing Following Starlink Mission

The latest SpaceX incident came shortly after Falcon 9 landed on the droneship, A Shortfall of Gravitas, with the rocket tipping and then exploding. It was after it successfully delivered the Starlink payload to orbit.

This was a supposed milestone for SpaceX as this would be the 23rd time that the Falcon 9 achieved this record number, with their celebration only to be ended shortly by the recent mishap.

SpaceX and Its Reusable Workhorse, the Falcon 9

The many missions and operations carried out by SpaceX was all fulfilled by its renowned first-stage rocket, the Falcon 9. The reusable rocket has since proven itself in the industry with its significant capabilities, demonstrating its power to reach orbit and return to the planet where a droneship awaits, launching and landing itself without a hitch.

From launching Starlink satellites to orbit, NASA's numerous Commercial Crew missions, and other military or private launch contracts, Falcon 9 was there to fulfill the payload delivery to orbit.

That being said, there were still problems that manifested itself with the Falcon 9, and one of the most recent was last July when one of its engines leaked mid-flight, leading to it being grounded by the FAA.

Over the past years, SpaceX reached milestones and created history with the Falcon 9, and even to this day, it is among the most celebrated and trusted rockets to fly the skies.

However, a recent incident led to another grounding of the Falcon 9, with the FAA preventing it from launching anytime soon, even with the much-awaited historic Polaris Dawn mission.