Launch failure for Chinese pseudo-company Ispace
Based on a very terse report in China’s state-run press today, there was a launch failure today for one of China’s pseudo-companies, launched from the Jiuquan spaceport in the northwest of China.
Further research suggests the failure was on Ispace’s Hyperbola-1 solid-fueled rocket. If so, this would be that rocket’s fourth failure out of seven launches.
No other information about the failure has so far been released.
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"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Based on a very terse report in China’s state-run press today, there was a launch failure today for one of China’s pseudo-companies, launched from the Jiuquan spaceport in the northwest of China.
Further research suggests the failure was on Ispace’s Hyperbola-1 solid-fueled rocket. If so, this would be that rocket’s fourth failure out of seven launches.
No other information about the failure has so far been released.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon. from any other book seller, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
So a success rate of 3 in 7? Sure, I’ll have those guys launch my $90M satellite.
Solids are tough to get down–unlike LM-9, solid rocket programs help forward ICBM research–so they may yet be propped up.
Is this company using new solid fuel rockets or are they using old military rockets engines? Those things should be good for at least 15 years.
Speaking of rocket failures: It seems that the almost unthinkable has happened tonight: A Falcon 9 mission experienced a partial failure during flight, when its second stage Merlin 9 experienced a RUD on relight.
Elon’s tweet explaining what SpaceX currently knows: “Upper stage restart to raise perigee resulted in an engine RUD for reasons currently unknown. Team is reviewing data tonight to understand root cause. Starlink satellites were deployed, but the perigee may be too low for them to raise orbit. Will know more in a few hours.” https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1811620381590966321
This represents the first in-flight failure for SpaceX’s Falcon rocket family since June 2015, a stunning streak of 344 consecutive successful launches until tonight. For the Block 5 Falcon 9, it is the first failure of any sort.
We must wait and see how this affects other coming scheduled launches. I expect that there will be some kind of suspension of operations while SpaceX sorts this out (though surely not nearly as long other launch providers have been accustomed to).
Richard M: I was about to go to the live stream to post tonight’s launch when your comment appeared. Thank you for the update. It made it much easier for me to figure out what happened.