The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has grounded SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket—again—after a glitch during a NASA mission this weekend. This marks the third FAA-mandated pause in three months, sparking questions about the reliability of the world’s most-flown rocket. 🚨
During Saturday’s crewed mission to the International Space Station, the Falcon 9’s second-stage engine failed to reignite properly, causing the booster to splash down outside its approved safety zone. Despite the hiccup, NASA astronauts arrived safely at the ISS. 🌍 \"The crew was never in danger,\" the FAA confirmed.
SpaceX described the issue as an \"off-nominal deorbit burn\"—tech-speak for \"something went sideways.\" The company vowed to investigate before resuming launches. But with Falcon 9 averaging 2-3 flights weekly, delays could ripple across global space projects. 📉
History Repeating? 🕰️
July’s grounding followed a botched Starlink satellite deployment, while August saw a failed first-stage landing. Though missions weren’t jeopardized, these mishaps spotlight rising tensions between SpaceX and the FAA over launch licensing and fines. 💸
Meanwhile, SpaceX’s Starship program faces its own regulatory hurdles. Fans of Elon Musk’s Mars ambitions might need to buckle up: The space race just got a little bumpier. 🪐
