From California, SpaceX is moving its in-flight abort test to the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral in Florida. For this test, the company will be using a Dragon capsule fitted atop a Falcon 9 rocket. The test will launch from the 39A launch pad but it has not been announced when the event will take place.
A few days ago, SpaceX experienced a failed launch for the first time with a Falcon 9 rocket, just two minutes after lifting off. The abort test was originally planned to launch in the fall from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base. The change was set in place in accordance with a revised agreement between NASA and SpaceX, which stipulated that the test will be scheduled once SpaceX has launched a prototype for a crew-carrying Dragon capsule. This prototype launch is expected to be done towards the end of 2016.
With the change, the Dragon capsule returning from the orbital test flight may be utilized for the in-flight abort test. Aside from saving on resources, using the Dragon capsule is advantageous because it will reflect a spacecraft model that astronauts will be likely using to fly to the International Space Station, making assessments more accurate.
An abort test was also carried out back in May, where the spacecraft made use of its own thrusters to launch without a rocket from Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral. It aimed to demonstrate that the Dragon capsule has the ability to separate a mission's crew from a failing rocket, saving lives in the event of a malfunction, similar to what occurred recently that led to a Falcon 9 rocket breaking apart and destroying cargo bound for the ISS and an unmanned Dragon capsule.
Last year, NASA's Commercial Crew Program awarded SpaceX with contracts amounting up to $2.6 billion in an effort to start preparing for flying crews of four to and from the ISS.
Recent mishap with the Falcon 9 will mean that the rocket will likely not be seeing launches for months until an investigation into the cause of the explosion is concluded. But while Falcon 9 rockets will not be seeing flights anytime soon, Cape Canaveral will still be busy with other launches.
