Cargo spacecraft "Dragon CRS-7"

Spacecraft nº:

SpaceX spacecraft nº: 8

Launch, orbit & landing data: Designation  F01448 / 15F02 Launch date - time  28 Jun 2015 - 14:21:11 UT Launch site  CC, SLC-40 Launch vehicle  Falcon-9 v1.1 (B1018) Spacecraft  Cargo Dragon C109 Manufacturer  SpaceX Dimensions cabine  Height: 8.1m (27 ft) - Dia: 4m (13 ft) Launch mass   6000 kg Mass (kg)  9500-10500 kg Total cargo mass (kg)   Destroyed  28 Jun 2015 - 14:23:30 UTC Destroyed on launch) Mission duretion  2min, 19sec

Space CRS-7 prior to launch.

The Of Course I Still Love You floating landing platform prior to the launch. Credit: SpaceX/NASA

Description:

• DRAGON CRS-6 is a cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station, contracted to NASA. It is the ninght flight for SpaceX's uncrewed Dragon cargo spacecraft, and the seven SpaceX operational mission contracted to NASA under a Commercial Resupply Services contract. The mission brings equipment and supplies to the space station.
• After the retirement of the space shuttle, the Dragon spacecraft is the only vehicle capable of returning large amounts of cargo from the space station to Earth. Russia's crewed Soyuz capsule can only accommodate limited cargo when landing with a three-person crew.

Mission details:

• In January 2015, the launch was tentatively scheduled by NASA for no earlier than June 13, 2015. This was adjusted to June 22, 2015, then moved forward to June 19, 2015, and adjusted again to June 26, 2015.
• Dragon CRS-7 was launched on Jun 28, 2015 but the Falcon 9 failed close to the end of stage 1 burn and was destroyed. Initial indications are that an overpressure in the second stage during second stage initialization 2 min 19s after launch, at 45 km altitude, caused it to blow apart.
• The launch was scheduled to be the third controlled-descent and landing test for the Falcon 9's first stage. It would have attempted to land on a new autonomous drone ship named Of Course I Still Love You – named after a ship in the novel The Player of Games by Iain M. Banks. The spacecraft was planned to stay in orbit for five weeks before returning to Earth with approximately 1,400 pounds (640 kg) of supplies and waste.
• CRS-7 was lost in the Atlantic, with its cargo which included 8 Flock 1f cubesats, the IDA-1 docking adapter, spacesuit EMU 3017, and the second NORS oyxgen recharge tank (the first one fried on Orb-3 last year).
• An independent investigation by NASA concluded that the most probable cause of the strut failure was a design error: instead of using a stainless-steel eye bolt made of aerospace-grade material, SpaceX chose an industrial-grade material without adequate screening and testing and overlooked the recommended safety margin

External links:

• Wikipedia: Dragon CRS-7 mission.

Astrophilately covers:

Launch cancel Houston. Credit: #401

Complete Vehicle breakup, cancel CC. Credit: #401

Cosmic Mail CRS7/ISS42. Credit: #401