Liquid‑Oxygen Leak in Falcon‑9: Delayed Launch of India’s Astronaut—Explained”
Just hours before Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla was set to board the Dragon spacecraft for a historic launch to the International Space Station, the mission has been postponed with no new launch date yet announced.
On Wednesday, just hours before the intended launch, SpaceX declared that teams needed additional time to fix the LOx (liquid oxygen) leak found during post-static fire booster inspections.
“The Falcon 9 launch of Ax-4 to the Space Station tomorrow is being postponed to give SpaceX teams more time to fix the LOx leak found during post-static-fire booster inspections. Once finished – and depending on Range availability – we will provide a new launch date,” tweeted SpaceX.
The launch of the Ax-4 mission was first scheduled for May 29, but it was postponed to June 8 and subsequently to June 10. It was rescheduled to June 11 because of weather problems and strong winds in the launch zone.
WHAT IS LIQUID OXYGEN?
Liquid oxygen (LOX), which is kept at a temperature of -183C, is an extremely cooled version of oxygen. It serves as an oxidizer in rockets such as SpaceX’s Falcon 9.
Because space has no atmospheric oxygen, rockets need to bring their own oxidizer for burning fuel. Falcon 9 uses a combination of LOX and RP-1, which is a refined type of kerosene, to fuel its Merlin engines.
This mixture, once combined and set alight, generates the high-pressure thrust required to propel the rocket into orbit.
Due to its high reactivity and ability to promote swift combustion, LOX is crucial for effective rocket propulsion. Any leak or malfunction involving LOX can have a serious effect on launch safety and timing.
WHAT’S THE ISSUE?
During the static fire test on June 9, SpaceX detected a leak from the booster.
It is noteworthy that the Falcon-9 used to launch the newly developed Dragon spacecraft had launched before. A few weeks ago, SpaceX utilized the booster to send up a group of Starlink satellites. After it landed, it was upgraded and combined with the Dragon spacecraft before being transported to the launch pad at Florida’s Kennedy Space Centre.
At first, SpaceX said they were putting in a purge to address the leak, but it seems that this solution was ineffective
With the launch now delayed, SpaceX may have to take the Falcon-9 off the pad completely and lay it down in order to resolve the problem. This would result in a larger postponement of the launch, potentially extending into the following week.
It is acknowledged that LOX leakage was found in the propulsion bay during the test. Following discussions between the ISRO team and specialists from Axiom and SpaceX, the decision was made to rectify the leak and perform necessary validation tests before launch clearance. Therefore, the Axiom-4 mission, scheduled for June 11, 2025, to send the first Indian Gaganyatri to the ISS, has been delayed,” Isro stated. Currently, SpaceX has not provided a definitive launch date for the Ax-4 mission.