First flights and contracts
On June 4, 2010, the first Falcon 9 launch successfully placed a test payload into the intended orbit.[584] The second launch of Falcon 9 was COTS Demo Flight 1, which placed an operational Dragon capsule in orbit on December 8, 2010.[585] The capsule re-entered the atmosphere after two orbits, allowing for testing the reentry procedures. The capsule was recovered off the coast of Mexico[586] and then placed on display at SpaceX headquarters.[587] The remaining objectives of the NASA COTS qualification program were combined into a single Dragon C2+ mission, on the condition that all milestones would be validated in space before berthing Dragon to the ISS.[588] The Dragon capsule was propelled to orbit in May 2012, and following successful tests in the next days it was grabbed with the station's robotic arm (Canadarm2) and docked to the ISS docking port for the first time on May 25. After successfully completing all the return procedures, the recovered Dragon C2+ capsule was put on display at Kennedy Space Center.[589] Thus, Falcon 9 and Dragon became the first fully commercially developed launcher to deliver a payload to the International Space Station, paving the way for SpaceX and NASA to sign the first Commercial Resupply Services agreement for cargo deliveries.[590]
The first operational cargo resupply mission to ISS, the fourth flight of Falcon 9, was launched in October 2012. An engine suffered a loss of pressure at 76 seconds after liftoff, which caused an automatic shutdown of that engine, but the remaining eight first-stage engines continued to burn and the Dragon capsule reached orbit successfully and thus demonstrated the rocket's "engine out" capability in flight.[591] Due to ISS visiting vehicle safety rules, at NASA's request, the secondary payload Orbcomm-2 was released into a lower-than-intended orbit.[592] Despite this incident, Orbcomm said they gathered useful test data from the mission and later in 2014, launched more satellites via SpaceX.[593] The mission continued to rendezvous and berth the Dragon capsule with the ISS where the ISS crew unloaded its payload and reloaded the spacecraft with cargo for return to Earth.[594]
Following unsuccessful attempts at recovering the first stage with parachutes, SpaceX upgraded to a much larger first stage booster and with greater thrust, termed Falcon 9 v1.1, and performed a demonstration flight of this version in September 2013.[595] After the second stage separation and delivering CASSIOPE, a very small payload relative to the rocket's capability, SpaceX conducted a novel high-altitude, high-velocity flight test wherein the booster attempted to reenter the lower atmosphere in a controlled manner and decelerate to a simulated over-water landing.[596]
Loss of CRS-7 mission
In June 2015, Falcon 9 Flight 19 carried a Dragon capsule on the seventh Commercial Resupply Services mission to the ISS. The second stage disintegrated due to an internal helium tank failure while the first stage was still burning normally. This was the first (and only as of May 2024) primary mission loss for any Falcon 9 rocket.[597] In addition to ISS consumables and experiments, this mission carried the first International Docking Adapter (IDA-1), whose loss delayed preparedness of the station's US Orbital Segment (USOS) for future crewed missions.[598]
Performance was nominal until T+140 seconds into launch when a cloud of white vapor appeared, followed by rapid loss of second-stage LOX tank pressure. The booster continued on its trajectory until complete vehicle breakup at T+150 seconds. The Dragon capsule was ejected from the disintegrating rocket and continued transmitting data until impact with the ocean. SpaceX officials stated that the capsule could have been recovered if the parachutes had deployed; however, the Dragon software did not include any provisions for parachute deployment in this situation.[599]
Full-thrust version and first booster landings
After pausing launches for months, SpaceX launched on December 22, 2015, the highly anticipated return-to-flight mission after the loss of CRS-7. This launch inaugurated a new Falcon 9 Full Thrust version of its flagship rocket featuring increased performance, notably thanks to subcooling of the propellants. After launching a constellation of 11 Orbcomm-OG2 second-generation satellites,[603] the first stage performed a controlled-descent and landing test for the eighth time, SpaceX attempted to land the booster on land for the first time. It managed to return the first stage successfully to the Landing Zone 1 at Cape Canaveral, marking the first successful recovery of a rocket first stage that launched a payload to orbit.[604] After recovery, the first stage booster performed further ground tests and then was put on permanent display outside SpaceX's headquarters in Hawthorne, California.[605]
Loss of AMOS-6 on the launch pad
On September 1, 2016, the 29th Falcon 9 rocket exploded on the launchpad while propellant was being loaded for a routine pre-launch static fire test. The payload, Israeli satellite AMOS-6, partly commissioned by Facebook, was destroyed with the launcher.[608] On January 2, 2017, SpaceX released an official statement indicating that the cause of the failure was a buckled liner in several of the COPV tanks, causing perforations that allowed liquid and/or solid oxygen to accumulate underneath the COPVs carbon strands, which were subsequently ignited possibly due to friction of breaking strands.[609]
Zuma launch
Zuma was a classified United States government satellite and was developed and built by Northrop Grumman at an estimated cost of US$3.5 billion. Its launch, originally planned for mid-November 2017, was postponed to January 8, 2018, as fairing tests for another SpaceX customer were assessed. Following a successful Falcon 9 launch, the first-stage booster landed at LZ-1.[610] Unconfirmed reports suggested that the Zuma spacecraft was lost, with claims that either the payload failed following orbital release, or that the customer-provided adapter failed to release the satellite from the upper stage, while other claims argued that Zuma was in orbit and operating covertly. SpaceX's COO Gwynne Shotwell stated that their Falcon 9 "did everything correctly" and that "Information published that is contrary to this statement is categorically false".[611] A preliminary report indicated that the payload adapter, modified by Northrop Grumman after purchasing it from a subcontractor, failed to separate the satellite from the second stage under the zero gravity conditions.[612][613]
Falcon Heavy test flight
The maiden launch of the Falcon Heavy occurred on February 6, 2018, making it the most powerful rocket since the Saturn V, with a theoretical payload capacity to low Earth orbit more than double the Delta IV Heavy.[614][615] Both side boosters landed nearly simultaneously after a ten-minute flight. The central core failed to land on a floating platform at sea.[616] The rocket carried a car and a mannequin to an eccentric heliocentric orbit that reaches further than aphelion of Mars.[617]
First crewed flights
On March 2, 2019, SpaceX launched its first orbital flight of Dragon 2 (Crew Dragon). It was an uncrewed mission to the International Space Station. The Dragon contained a mannequin named Ripley, which was equipped with multiple sensors to gather data about how a human would feel during the flight. Along with the mannequin was 300 pounds of cargo of food and other supplies.[618] Also on board was Earth plush toy referred to as a "Super high tech zero-g indicator".[619] The toy became a hit with astronaut Anne McClain, who showed the plushy on the ISS each day[620] and also deciding to keep it on board to experience the crewed SpX-DM2.
The Dragon spent six days in space, including five days docked to the International Space Station. During the time, various systems were tested to make sure the vehicle was ready for US astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken to fly in it in 2020. The Dragon undocked and performed a re-entry burn before splashing down on March 8, 2019, at 08:45 EST, 320 km off the coast of Florida.
Starlink 9-3 upper stage anomaly
On July 12, 2024, SpaceX launched a group of Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. While the booster performed nominally, including a successful droneship landing, the upper stage failed to relight for a second burn, with ice appearing to accumulate around the engine during the first burn due to a liquid oxygen leak that developed from vibrational fatigue which led to a crack in a pressure sensor line.[623] The satellites were deployed from the upper stage into the lower initial parking orbit with a perigee of 135 km, less than half the targeted perigee.[624] After separation, the satellites were commanded to burn their ion thrusters. SpaceX modified the satellite software so the thrusters would produce as much thrust as possible.[625] Despite this, all of the satellites re-entered the atmosphere following the launch.[135] This launch was the first Falcon 9 Block 5
Reuse of the rocket parts
SpaceX has developed a program to reuse the first-stage booster and its fairings or Dragon capsules, setting multiple booster and fairing or Dragon reflight records respectively. Only second-stages are expendable, reducing launch costs significantly.
