Watch as SpaceX’s newest spacecraft attempts to escape a fake rocket emergency

Science & Tech 18:30 19.01.2020

On Sunday, SpaceX is launching one of its last big flight tests for NASA, one that could ultimately pave the way for the company to fly people to space later this year. For this flight, SpaceX will test out the emergency escape system on its new passenger spacecraft — and will probably destroy a Falcon 9 rocket in the process. Eurasia Diary reports citing Verge.

The vehicle that SpaceX is testing is its new Crew Dragon capsule, a passenger spacecraft the company has been developing for NASA as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew program. Before NASA will let its astronauts fly on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, the agency wants to know that the vehicle can keep people safe in the unlikely event of an emergency. That’s what this weekend’s test, known as an in-flight abort test, is all about. SpaceX plans to mimic a failed rocket launch and show that its Crew Dragon can survive and protect its precious inhabitants inside. “We want to practice, practice, practice,” Benji Reed, director of crew mission management at SpaceX, said during a press conference on Frida. “We test like we fly, and we want to practice like we fly.”

Embedded in the hull of the Crew Dragon are eight SuperDraco engines, designed to fire if the Falcon 9 rocket carrying the capsule starts to suffer some major failure. The SuperDracos can propel the spacecraft up and away from the decaying rocket. Once the Crew Dragon is at a safe distance, the capsule would then deploy its parachutes and lower itself gently into the Atlantic Ocean. A recovery boat would then meet up with the capsule and rescue the crew inside.

SpaceX has tested out this escape system before, but only when the Crew Dragon was on the ground. The company and NASA want to see this process in action while the capsule is zooming into the sky on top of a rocket. That’s when the system will be needed most if a worst-case scenario happens in the future. So this weekend, SpaceX will launch one of its used Falcon 9 rockets — which has been to space and back three times before — with a Crew Dragon on top. At 84 seconds after launch, when the rocket and capsule are feeling the most stress during flight, the SuperDracos will fire and the rocket’s main engines will cut off. The Crew Dragon will then go through the entire escape routine.

SpaceX definitely expects to lose its Falcon 9 rocket during this test. The vehicle should break apart on the way back down to Earth thanks to the speed it’s going and the weather conditions. As for how it will be destroyed, that’s unclear. But the rocket will be fully fueled, which means some of that propellant might light up. “We expect there to be some sort of ignition and probably a fireball of some kind,” said Reed.

No people will be on board this flight, though SpaceX will have two smart dummies inside the Crew Dragon to gather data about how the maneuver would affect future crew members. Both the dummies and vehicle will be recovered by boat after the test.

paceX’s Falcon 9 is scheduled to take off from Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral Florida on Sunday, during a six-hour launch window between 8AM and 2PM ET. SpaceX will wait to launch until they see good weather at both the launch site and the place in the Atlantic Ocean the Crew Dragon is expected to fall. Having those weather conditions line up may take some time. “Y’all may be waiting for a while, while we’re trying to find the perfect time for us to be able to conduct this test,” Kathy Lueders, the program manager for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, said during the press conference. SpaceX was originally supposed to launch on Saturday but had to stand down due to bad weather at both locations.

If this test goes well, then the next big flight of the Crew Dragon will have people on board. The date for that highly anticipated trip is still very much an open question. The Crew Dragon that will be used for that test is slated to arrive in Florida by the end of this month, according to SpaceX. And after the in-flight abort, SpaceX and NASA will need to review all the data and do additional paperwork, and SpaceX still has to do some more tests of its parachutes, which it upgraded last year. “We are really human certifying these Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9,” said Lueders, adding that “making sure we’ve dotted all the “I”s and crossed the “T”s before our crewed demonstration mission is very important.”

SpaceX’s coverage will begin 20 minutes prior to takeoff, while NASA’s coverage is set to begin 15 minutes beforehand. Since liftoff time could change a lot, be sure to check both SpaceX and NASA’s twitter feed for updates.

IEPF issued a statement regarding Azerbaijani children at the UN Human Rights Council

News line

Maintaining Israel-Iran truce among Türkiye's top strategic goals: Turkish foreign minister
20:15 30.06.2025
Armenia, EU sign document on crisis management
20:00 30.06.2025
Recep Tayyip Erdogan to visit Azerbaijan
19:45 30.06.2025
Ersin Tatar to visit Azerbaijan
19:30 30.06.2025
Yekaterinburg incident is open attack on national identity of Azerbaijanis
19:15 30.06.2025
Pakistani PM to visit Azerbaijan on July 3 Foreign policy
19:05 30.06.2025
Azerbaijani MP: Murder of Azerbaijanis in Yekaterinburg - barbarity
18:45 30.06.2025
EU extends sectoral sanctions on Russia for six more months
18:30 30.06.2025
COP29 delegation arrives in Seville to attend international conference
18:15 30.06.2025
Southern Europe swelters as 2025’s first major heatwave triggers wildfire, health alerts
18:05 30.06.2025
China launches freight train linking Beijing to Baku
17:45 30.06.2025
Total number of Azerbaijani mine victims since 2020 Patriotic War reaches 399
17:30 30.06.2025
Russian ombudsman asks Prosecutor General's Office to investigate detentions in Yekaterinburg
17:15 30.06.2025
Azerbaijan participates in 95th Annual General Meeting of Bank for International Settlements
17:00 30.06.2025
Anadolu: US envoy expects Trump, Erdogan to resolve arms sanctions on Türkiye this year Region
16:45 30.06.2025
Oil prices fluctuate in global markets
16:30 30.06.2025
UEFA Women’s Euro 2025: Full match schedule, groups, format
16:20 30.06.2025
Abu Dhabi population in 2024 grows 7.5% to reach 4.14 million
16:15 30.06.2025
Interior Ministry's operation in Sputnik-Azerbaijan office continues
16:00 30.06.2025
Court hearing underway on criminal case of persons of Armenian origin accused of committing war crimes
15:45 30.06.2025
Representatives of Moroccan House of Representatives visit Victory Park in Baku
15:35 30.06.2025
Bodies of brothers killed in Yekaterinburg handed over to relatives
15:30 30.06.2025
Baghdad Amreyev: TIF can support soft connectivity measures over Middle Corridor
15:15 30.06.2025
1,350 hectares of land cleared of mines in Azerbaijan last week
15:00 30.06.2025
GERB Leader Borissov and Home Affairs EU Commissioner Brunner discuss Schengen external borders in Sofia
14:45 30.06.2025
Kallas: Baku-Yerevan normalization could pave way for lasting peace in South Caucasus
14:30 30.06.2025
Sahiba Gafarova to participate in Uzbekistan-Azerbaijan interparliamentary forum in Khiva
14:30 30.06.2025
First-ever ECO Women Forum to be held in Azerbaijan's Lachin
14:15 30.06.2025
MP: Violence and brutality committed against Azerbaijanis in Yekaterinburg is unacceptable
14:00 30.06.2025
EPF: France placing radioactive waste on Armenia's territory, close to conditional border with Azerbaijan
13:45 30.06.2025
Twice-a-year shot could transform HIV prevention, but can the world afford it?
13:25 30.06.2025
Telangana chemical factory blast in India kills 10, injures dozens
13:15 30.06.2025
Average salary in Baku increases by more than 8%
13:05 30.06.2025
Azerbaijan relocates 37 more families to Kangarli village of Aghdam district
12:55 30.06.2025
German foreign minister arrives in Kyiv
12:25 30.06.2025
Officials confirm 6 were killed in Howland plane crash in US
12:15 30.06.2025
Bodies of Safarov brothers, killed in Yekaterinburg, to be brought to Azerbaijan today
12:05 30.06.2025
Norwegian fund drops US, German companies over sales to Israeli military
11:55 30.06.2025
ASAN service model to be implemented in Rwanda
11:35 30.06.2025
Politico: US and India could sign trade deal in fall
11:25 30.06.2025
Hamısı