Imagine trying to hold down the explosive forces generated by a rocket. That’s exactly what Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) did when they successfully conducted a full launch dress rehearsal and hold down firing of the Falcon 1 Flight 3 vehicle. The test took place on Omelek Island, SpaceX’s launch site at the Kwajalein Atoll, 2,500 miles southeast of Hawaii. This test is the final step before launch of the Falcon 1 rocket. This marks the first launch pad firing of SpaceX’s new Merlin 1C regeneratively cooled engine, which operated at full power with only the hold-down system restraining the rocket from flight.
In the coming weeks, SpaceX will conduct a thorough review of all data prior to the opening of the launch window for flight, which runs from late July through early September. The emphasis is not on the schedule, but rather the successful delivery of the Defense Department and NASA satellites that the company has been contracted to put into orbit. The Falcon 1 will carry the Trailblazer satellite for the Jumpstart Program of the Department of Defense’s Operationally Responsive Space Office (ORS). Additional secondary payloads include an adapter system developed by the government of Malaysia that holds two small NASA satellites. SpaceX will provide complete launch day coverage and a live webcast of the launch and ascent into orbit at their website—Hawthorne, California
