SpaceX's Falcon 9: Quiet Achievements Amid Starship's Spotlight

I. Introduction

While SpaceX's Starship vehicle commanded the spotlight this week, the company's workhorse, the Falcon 9 rocket, quietly reached some remarkable milestones. These achievements, though occurring during relatively unheralded Starlink satellite launches, are significant as they highlight the value of first - stage reuse, a concept SpaceX has been pioneering over the past decade.

II. Recent Milestones of Falcon 9

A. The 400th Drone Ship Landing

1. Launch Details

On Wednesday morning, the Starlink 10 - 56 mission was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The first stage, Booster 1096, which was making its second launch, successfully landed on the "Just Read the Instructions" drone ship. This marked the 400th time SpaceX executed a drone ship landing.

1. Significance

The repeated success of drone ship landings showcases SpaceX's refined capabilities in precision landing technology, a crucial aspect of first - stage reuse.

B. The 30th Flight of a Booster

1. Launch Details

Less than 24 hours later, another Falcon 9 rocket launched the Starlink 10 - 11 mission from a nearby launch pad at Kennedy Space Center. The first stage, Booster 1067, returned and landed on the "A Shortfall of Gravitas" drone ship. This booster, which debuted in June 2021, has been involved in a diverse range of missions, including launching two Crew Dragon vehicles to the International Space Station and Galileo satellites for the European Union. On Thursday, it made its 30th flight, setting a new record for Falcon 9 boosters.

1. Significance

Reaching 30 flights for a single booster not only attests to the durability and reliability of the Falcon 9 design but also validates SpaceX's long - term strategy of first - stage reuse.

III. The Journey of First - Stage Reuse

A. The Beginning of the Concept Validation

1. First Controlled Entry (2013)

SpaceX first achieved a controlled entry of the Falcon 9 rocket's first stage in September 2013, during the first flight of version 1.1 of the vehicle. This demonstrated the viability of supersonic retropropulsion, a concept that was previously only theoretical.

1. Technical Challenges

During this process, the rocket's nine Merlin engines had to be ignited while the vehicle was traveling faster than the speed of sound through the upper atmosphere, with external temperatures exceeding 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit. The blunt force of reentry posed a risk of splaying out the outer - ring engines. Tom Mueller, the company's chief of propulsion at the time, described watching the launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, with a camera aboard Elon Musk's private jet tracking the rocket. The first stage made it down intact, although it ultimately blew up upon landing in the ocean.

1. Initial Success and Implications

This initial success, despite the post - landing explosion, signaled the potential of first - stage reuse and spurred further development efforts.

B. Refinement and Achievements

1. First Pad Landing (2015)

By December 2015, SpaceX had landed its first rocket on a pad along the Florida coast.

1. First Drone Ship Landing (2016)

The first drone ship landing followed in April 2016.

1. First Reflight (2017)

A little less than a year after the first drone ship landing, SpaceX reflew a Falcon 9 stage for the first time. These steps represented significant progress in perfecting the technology for first - stage reuse.

IV. Industry Skepticism and the Outcome

A. European and Japanese Space Agencies' Choices

1. Competitor Decisions

In the mid - 2010s, as the European and Japanese space agencies were planning their next - generation rockets (the Ariane 6 for Europe and the H3 for Japan), they opted for traditional, expendable rockets instead of pursuing reuse.

1. Current Situation

As a result, in terms of launch technology, both are now approximately a decade behind SpaceX. If the ambitious Starship rocket is successful, this gap could widen further.

B. United Launch Alliance's Response

1. Initial Skepticism

Historically, United Launch Alliance (ULA) has been SpaceX's main competitor in the United States. A decade ago, ULA's engineers were dismissive of SpaceX's plan to reuse first stages. They wrote papers and conducted studies arguing that SpaceX's plans were impractical.

1. The SMART Concept

Almost a decade ago, ULA began promoting its "SMART" (Sensible Modular Autonomous Return Technology) approach, which involved separating only the engine section of the Vulcan rocket. ULA claimed this approach was superior and implied that SpaceX's booster flyback approach was inferior.

1. Analysis and Outcome

According to ULA's 2015 analysis, the SMART plan would yield cost savings as early as the second launch of a booster, while SpaceX's approach would require 10 flights for cost savings. However, a decade later, SpaceX has flown the same rocket 30 times and achieved an annual launch cadence approaching the total number of rockets ULA has launched in its 20 - year existence. Meanwhile, ULA's SMART remains a theoretical concept.

This story originally appeared on Ars Technica.