Following the destruction of a Falcon 9 booster after landing on March 2nd, SpaceX officials revealed new details about the incident during briefings on March 7th. The booster, used for launching Starlink Group 12-20 satellites, experienced a fire approximately 48 seconds after landing. Julianna Scheiman, director of NASA science missions at SpaceX, explained that the fire compromised the booster's structural integrity, causing it to topple. Both SpaceX and NASA's Launch Services Program (LSP) thoroughly reviewed the data, concluding that there’s “no concern or risk to ascent,” confirmed Denton Gibson, launch director for the mission for NASA LSP.
The upcoming launch of NASA’s SPHEREx and PUNCH missions, initially scheduled for March 1st, was delayed due to launch vehicle issues, including the post-landing incident. While SpaceX hasn't launched a Falcon 9 since the incident, they've addressed other issues, such as the payload adapter and fairing. Bill Gerstenmaier, vice president of build and flight reliability at SpaceX, provided further details, stating that a fuel leak in one of the booster's nine engines began around 85 seconds after liftoff. The fuel vaporized, creating a flammable environment. However, the lack of oxygen during ascent prevented ignition. The fire erupted post-landing when oxygen interacted with the fuel and a hot engine component. This fire, contained within a single engine compartment, demonstrates the contained nature of potential ascent failures.
Despite the extensive damage from the fire, which melted aluminum components, engineers are working to pinpoint the leak's source. The investigation is challenging due to the fire's severity. NASA’s commercial crew program manager, Steve Stich, highlighted the agency's careful review of the incident as it prepares for the Crew-10 launch, scheduled for March 12th, which includes a planned static fire test on March 9th to scrutinize for potential fuel leaks. “We have an opportunity to step back and think about our flight, and think about the maintenance we did on our vehicle, all the areas that we inspected,” he noted.