FAA grounds SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket after malfunction

SpaceX must investigate why part of its Falcon 9 rocket malfunctioned after launching NASA astronauts on Saturday, the FAA said, grounding the rocket for the third time in three months.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration on Monday said SpaceX must investigate why the second stage of its workhorse Falcon 9 rocket malfunctioned after a NASA astronaut mission on Saturday, grounding the rocket for the third time in three months.

After SpaceX on Saturday launched two astronauts to the International Space Station for NASA, the rocket body that had boosted the crew further into space failed to properly re-light its engine for its “deorbit burn,” a routine procedure that discards the booster into the ocean after completing its flight.

The astronaut crew carried on to the ISS safely, docking on Sunday as planned. The FAA said there were no injuries or property damage linked to the booster mishap.

The malfunction caused the booster to fall into a region of the Pacific Ocean outside of the designated safety zone that the FAA approved for the mission.

SpaceX said the booster “experienced an off-nominal deorbit burn. As a result, the second stage safely landed in the ocean, but outside of the targeted area.”

https://www.nbcnews.com/science/space/spacex-falcon-9-rocket-grounded-faa-rcna171568

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