Latest news with #Gerstenmaier
Time of India
a day ago
- Science
- Time of India
Axiom-4 setback: Falcon-9 oxygen leak, stormy skies delay ISS flight; why India's Shubhanshu Shukla must wait for maiden spaceflight
The much-anticipated Axiom-4 mission , which aims to send Indian astronaut and three other international crew members to the International Space Station (ISS), has faced yet another delay. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Originally scheduled for May 29, the mission has been postponed multiple times due to a combination of technical issues and adverse weather conditions. Technical snag The latest setback comes after identified a liquid oxygen (LOX) leak in the Falcon-9 rocket during a post-static fire inspection. This issue, which traces back to the rocket's previous Starlink mission, was initially undetected during the booster's post-flight refurbishment. SpaceX Vice President William Gerstenmaier explained that the leak was discovered during a seven-second hot test on the launch pad, which was intended to validate the performance of the booster stage. In addition to the LOX leak, engineers also identified a thrust vector control issue with engine five. "Space flight is really hard, and we're learning every day," Gerstenmaier said. Weather woes Compounding the technical difficulties, the mission has also been hampered by unfavorable weather conditions. On June 10, the launch was postponed by a day due to bad weather in the flight path. SpaceX and Axiom Space have been closely monitoring weather patterns to ensure a safe launch window. The Axiom-4 mission is a significant milestone for India, Poland, and Hungary, marking a return to human spaceflight for these nations. The crew including veteran astronaut Peggy Whitson , includes Polish engineer Sławosz Uznański, Hungarian researcher Tibor Kapu, and India's Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The 14-day mission aims to foster international collaboration and scientific research aboard the ISS. Chairman V Narayanan, who is in the US to oversee the launch, confirmed the delay and expressed confidence in SpaceX's ability to resolve the technical issues. "The ISRO team discussed with experts at Axiom and SpaceX, and it was decided that the leak would be fixed and necessary validation tests conducted before clearing for the launch," Narayanan said. SpaceX has also assured that once repairs are complete and pending range availability, a new launch date will be announced.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Propellant leak delays SpaceX launch of private Ax-4 astronaut mission to the ISS
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Four private astronauts will have to wait a bit longer to get to space. The four-person Ax-4 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) was supposed to lift off atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday morning (June 11). But that's no longer the plan. "Standing down from tomorrow's Falcon 9 launch of Ax-4 to the @Space_Station to allow additional time for SpaceX teams to repair the LOx leak identified during post static fire booster inspections. Once complete — and pending Range availability — we will share a new launch date," SpaceX announced via X on Tuesday evening (June 10). LOx is liquid oxygen, one of the two propellants used by the Falcon 9's Merlin engines. The other is RP-1, a rocket-grade kerosene. As SpaceX's post mentioned, the company noticed the LOx leak after static-firing the rocket's first stage, an activity that took place on Sunday (June 8). Static fires are common prelaunch tests in which a rocket's engines are briefly ignited while the booster is anchored to the pad. Bill Gerstenmaier, SpaceX's vice president of build and flight reliability, discussed the leak during a press conference on Monday (June 9) that was held after Ax-4's launch readiness review. This Falcon 9 first stage has one flight under its belt, and the leak was also seen on that mission, during its reentry to Earth's atmosphere, Gerstenmaier said. SpaceX "discovered that we had not fully repaired the booster during refurbishment, or we didn't, actually, didn't find the leak and didn't get it corrected," he said. Gerstenmaier said on Monday that SpaceX was still troubleshooting the leak, though he expressed confidence that the issue wouldn't prevent an on-time liftoff. "We're installing a purge that will essentially mitigate the leak, if it still continues, if we see it on launch day," he said. "So we will be fully ready to go fly." Related stories: — Axiom Space: Building the off-Earth economy — International Space Station: Everything you need to know about the orbital laboratory — Axiom Space eyes the moon while continuing to dream big in Earth orbit Ax-4 will be the fourth astronaut mission to the ISS organized by the Houston company Axiom Space. It will be commanded by Peggy Whitson, a record-breaking former NASA astronaut who is now Axiom's director of human spaceflight. The other crewmembers are pilot Shubhanshu Shukla of India; mission specialist Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland and the European Space Agency; and Hungarian mission specialist Tibor Kapu. No astronaut from any of these three countries has ever visited the ISS before. The Ax-4 astronauts will spend about two weeks living and working aboard the orbiting lab, performing about 60 different science experiments. They'll then return to Earth with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.
India.com
a day ago
- Science
- India.com
Big Update! Indian Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla's Axiom 4 Mission launch postponed again due to…, SpaceX says…
Indian Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla's Axiom 4 Mission launch postponed again New Delhi: The Axiom-4 mission, which was scheduled to carry Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla and three others to the International Space Station on Tuesday, was put off again to fix a leak in the SpaceX's Falcon-9 rocket. SpaceX announced that it was 'standing down' from the Falcon-9 launch to allow time for repairs after a post-static inspection of the rocket's boosters identified a liquid oxygen leak. 'Once complete and pending Range availability, we will share a new launch date,' SpaceX said in an X post. ISRO Chairman V Narayanan said the liquid oxygen leak was detected in the propulsion bay during a seven-second hot test on the launch pad. The hot test was to validate the performance of the booster stage of Falcon-9 launch vehicle. 'The ISRO team discussed with experts at Axiom and SpaceX and it was decided that the leak would be fixed and necessary validation tests conducted before clearing for the launch,' Narayanan said. Hence, the Axiom-4 launch slated on June 11, 2025 to send the first Indian Gaganyatri to the International Space Station stands postponed, the ISRO chairman said. Axiom Space spokesperson said that during the post-static fire investigation of the Falcon-9 booster that supports the Axiom-4 mission, SpaceX teams identified a liquid oxygen leak that requires additional work. 'SpaceX continues to work closely with Axiom Space and partners,' Axiom Space said in a statement. Commander Peggy Whitson, pilot Shukla and specialists Tigor Kapu of Hungary and Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland were slated to embark up on the Axiom-4 mission. The 14-day mission will 'realise the return' to human spaceflight for India, Poland and Hungary. The Axiom-4 mission was originally scheduled for launch on May 29. It was first postponed to June 8 and later to June 10. On June 10, the launch was postponed by a day due to bad weather in the flight path. Addressing a pre-launch press conference on Monday, SpaceX Vice President William Gerstenmaier said that engineers had fixed some snags in the Falcon-9 rocket that were discovered during the static fire test and had gone unnoticed during the post-flight refurbishment of boosters. Gerstenmaier said that engineers had discovered a locks leak that was previously seen on the booster during its entry on the last mission and was not fully repaired during the refurbishment. 'We are continuing to troubleshoot that. We should get that completed today and we will have that back in configuration. We are installing a purge that will essentially mitigate the leak if it still continues… on the launch day,' he had said. Gerstenmaier said engineers had also discovered an engine 5 thrust vector control problem and the components associated with that have already been changed.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Science
- Time of India
Close watch on weather at NASA's Florida spaceport ahead of Axiom-4 launch on Wednesday
SpaceX, NASA and Axiom Space are closely watching weather patterns at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida where Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla and three others look forward to their travel to the International Space Station (ISS), now scheduled for Wednesday. Addressing a pre-launch press conference, SpaceX Vice President William Gerstenmaier said engineers had fixed some snags in the Falcon-9 rocket that were discovered during the static fire test and had gone unnoticed during the post-flight refurbishment of boosters. The Axiom-4 commercial mission to the ISS had to be put off by a day to Wednesday evening due to inclement weather conditions in the flight path of the SpaceX rocket that would lift off from NASA's Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 3.5, 4.5 BHK Homes starting at ₹4.89 Cr.* Hero Homes Learn More Undo Gerstenmaier said engineers had discovered a locks leak that was previously seen on the booster during its entry on the last mission and was not fully repaired during the refurbishment. "We are continuing to troubleshoot that. We should get that completed today and we will have that back in configuration. We are installing a purge that will essentially mitigate the leak if it still continues... on the launch day," he said. Live Events Gerstenmaier said engineers also discovered an engine 5 thrust vector control problem and the components associated with that have already been changed. "We will be complete with all our work this (Tuesday) evening and we will be ready to support launch as early as Wednesday," he said. Indian Space Research Organisation ( ISRO ) Chairman V Narayanan said on Monday that due to weather conditions, the launch of the Axiom-4 mission for sending Indian Gaganyatri to the ISS was postponed from June 10 to June 11. "The targeted time of launch is 5:30 PM IST on 11th June 2025," Narayanan said in a post on X on Monday. Jimmy Tager, the Launch Weather Officer, 45th Weather Squadron of the US Space Force, said there was surface high pressure to the south east of central Florida, which typically produces south west flow across the area. "Now over the next couple of days, the surface high pressure is going to move further towards the north and that is going to switch our primary flow towards the south east. South east flow does tend to create some more isolated scattered showers to thundershowers in the morning time," he said. He added that even though the Probability of Violation (POV) was lower for the initial attempt (June 10), for the next attempt on Wednesday, the POV does increase to 20 per cent. "And as we get to Thursday (June 12), the backup opportunity POV increases a little bit more to about 25 per cent. So though it is on the lower end, it does look like there could be a possibility of isolated scattered thunderstorms near the area at the launch time," Tager said. "But for the ascent corridor, even though the winds are pretty strong right now, it does look like winds are going to be improving over the next couple of days. As we get to Wednesday, winds will be even better, and Thursday, even better than Wednesday," he added. Dana Weigel, Manager, International Space Station Programme, NASA, said that there are launch opportunities till June 30. She was responding to questions on the launch window for the Axiom-4 mission due to unfavourable weather conditions. "I think we will have the vehicle ready, the crews trained and the cargo loaded. I think we're ready from a hardware standpoint. It is just kind of waiting for the weather to get there. In terms of launch opportunities, we have launch opportunities all the way through June 30," Weigel said. She said the Russian cargo vehicle 'Progress' will undock from the ISS later and a new one will dock for which there would be a brief cut-off for other launches. "Then, we have a brief cut-off for high Solar Beta. Then we pick up again like in the middle of July. So, plenty of opportunities to fly the vehicle," Weigel said. The Axiom-4 (Ax-4) mission comprises Commander Peggy Whitson, pilot Shukla and specialists Tigor Kapu of Hungary and Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland. The 14-day mission will "realise the return" to human spaceflight for India, Poland, and Hungary.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Climate
- Time of India
Axiom-4 Mission: From weather risks to ISRO's spending, all you need to know before Shubhanshu Shukla reaches ISS
As SpaceX prepares to launch the Ax-4 mission on June 11, weather and safety remain top priorities for all partners involved, Axiom Space , SpaceX, and NASA. At a briefing on Monday, June 9, a Launch Weather Officer Jimmy Taeger with the US Space Force, explained that Central Florida's weather is being affected by a high-pressure system from the southeast. This system is expected to move north, changing the wind patterns and possibly causing isolated showers. Taeger said the weather risk for Tuesday, June 10, had gone down slightly, but it might go up again for Wednesday. 'For June 11, there's about a 20% chance of weather rules being broken. For the backup day, June 12, it's a bit higher, around 25%,' he said. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 'It Runs While I Sleep' – The AI Side Hustle Sweeping United Kingdom TApp Read Now Undo Wind conditions are expected to get better mid-week, but passing showers could still be a problem during the launch window. 'Even though winds are improving, the one thing we're watching closely is the chance of showers,' he added. Live Events Axiom and SpaceX have confirmed they are targeting an 8 am Eastern Time (5:30 pm IST) launch on June 11. What technical issues did SpaceX face? SpaceX also had to deal with some technical problems found during pre-launch checks. SpaceX's Vice President William Gerstenmaier of Build and Flight Reliability, said a liquid oxygen leak was discovered during a test of the Falcon-9 rocket. This leak had not been spotted earlier after the rocket's last mission for Starlink. To fix the issue, engineers installed a system to prevent the leak from affecting the mission. 'We discovered the booster hadn't been fully repaired. We're now installing a purge to handle the leak,' he explained. There was also a problem with the thrust vector control system on one of the engines, which has now been fixed. All repairs are expected to be completed by the evening before launch. Gerstenmaier added that a recent full-scale launch day simulation, known as a 'dry dress rehearsal', went smoothly. What's new with the Dragon capsule? This mission will be the first flight for the new version of the Dragon spacecraft. Gerstenmaier said the capsule has received several updates, including better food processing and storage, improved propulsion components, and a redesigned system for securing the crew's stairs. 'This isn't just the same old Dragon,' he said. 'We've made improvements to keep it flying safely.' A busy year for SpaceX The Ax-4 launch will also be the second flight for the Falcon-9 booster being used. Gerstenmaier said, 'I can't think of a better way for this capsule to enter the fleet than by flying this international crew.' So far in 2025, SpaceX has already launched three Dragon missions, two of which carried crew, within just 38 days. He added, 'While we were doing those, our teams were also preparing for Axiom-4.' The Department of Space has invested approximately Rs 413 crore in the Ax-4 mission, which will send Shubhanshu Shukla to the International Space Station, marking him as the first Indian to reach the ISS.
