Polaris Dawn Back on Schedule: Falcon 9's Flight Ban Lifted

This week, the Falcon 9 rocket successfully delivered its payload to the designated orbit during the Starlink internet satellite mission 8-6. However, the Falcon 9's booster B1062, which has been reused 23 times, flipped over and exploded while attempting to land on the drone ship.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has mandated SpaceX to conduct a comprehensive investigation into this recovery incident. Until the investigation is clear, the Falcon 9 is grounded, posing a significant challenge for SpaceX.

The Falcon 9 serves as SpaceX's workhorse rocket. In the coming days, SpaceX was scheduled to launch the Polaris Dawn mission, which aims to achieve the first commercial spacewalk by a four-person crew, marking a historic milestone for private space exploration.

Interestingly, the FAA has suddenly announced its decision to allow the Falcon 9 to resume launches, despite the ongoing investigation. While permitting the relaunch, the FAA has requested SpaceX to continue probing into the B1062 launch mishap.

This means that SpaceX can proceed with the Polaris Dawn mission, pending favorable weather conditions. Given the FAA's approval for relaunch, upcoming Starlink satellite launches are likely back on the table. It remains unclear whether this approval was specifically for the Polaris Dawn mission or if the FAA believes the B1062 incident is not a major concern, allowing SpaceX's other missions to move forward as well.

Initially slated for this week, the Polaris Dawn mission's launch details are still under wraps from SpaceX, potentially moving to next week. The mission is scheduled to last five days.