SpaceX’s Falcon 9 Booster Breaks Apart During Landing

CBS News reports:

After standing down from the piloted Polaris Dawn launch late Tuesday, SpaceX shifted gears and pressed ahead with plans for back-to-back launches of Starlink internet satellites early Wednesday, one from Florida and the other from California.

But the second flight was called off after the first stage used in the Florida launch toppled into the Atlantic Ocean and broke apart while attempting to land on a SpaceX droneship stationed several hundred miles northeast of Cape Canaveral

A landing leg immediately collapsed on touchdown and the booster, obscured by fire and smoke, tipped over the side of the landing barge into the Atlantic.

Read the full article.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 first-stage booster tipped over and caught fire after its landing legs made contact with a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. pic.twitter.com/8ZXLbLTcvC

— USA TODAY Video (@usatodayvideo) August 28, 2024

Regarding todays landing failure of the SpaceX Booster B1062, NSF reached out if this would result in a mishap investigation.

The @FAANews responded to @NASASpaceflight: pic.twitter.com/FUd1QMFaO3

— Adrian Beil (@BCCarCounters) August 28, 2024

After a successful ascent, Falcon 9’s first stage booster tipped over following touchdown on the A Shortfall of Gravitas droneship. Teams are assessing the booster’s flight data and status. This was the booster’s 23rd launch.

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) August 28, 2024