18 flights is very impressive! I wonder where they will stop?
this post was submitted on 04 Nov 2023
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The official also said SpaceX might extend the limit on Falcon 9 booster flights beyond 20, the number at which Falcon 9s are currently certified for Starlink missions. The limits are lower for flights with customer payloads.
The current limit is 20 flights, but SpaceX might recertify for 25 or 30 flights depending on how boosters hold up after 20 flights. I believe the limit was previously 10 flights, which was then raised to 15, and then to 20.
I wonder where they will stop?
probably the ground
or a barge! Or the ocean
This is the best summary I could come up with:
CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida—In three-and-a-half years of service, one of SpaceX's reusable Falcon 9 boosters stands apart from the rest of the company's rocket inventory.
For its maiden launch on May 30, 2020, the rocket propelled NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken into the history books on SpaceX's first mission to send people into orbit.
This ended a nine-year gap in America's capability to launch astronauts into low-Earth orbit and was the first time a commercial spacecraft achieved this feat.
At that time, the rocket was fresh from SpaceX's factory in Southern California, glistening white in color, with a bright red NASA "worm" logo emblazoned on the side.
After taking off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, the Falcon 9's first stage fired its nine kerosene-burning Merlin engines for about two-and-a-half minutes, accelerating the launch vehicle to more than 5,000 mph (8,000 km per hour).
It certainly helps when you get the majority of the rocket (the booster and the payload fairing) back after each launch, allowing technicians to perform inspections and refurbishment, occasional engine swaps, upgrades, or anything that needs to be done between missions.
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