SpaceX to return to flight in 6-8 weeks

SpaceX had shut down its launch program after the June 28 disaster that destroyed a Falcon 9 with a space station resupply capsule a couple of minutes after it left the launch pad at Cape Canaveral.

The path to Return To Flight (RTF) saw the first “Full Thrust” Falcon 9 shipped out of the factory in late August (L2), en route to the company’s test site in McGregor, Texas.

Those struts have since been replaced in the upcoming fleet of Falcon 9’s – both in the first and the second stages, along with additional improvements to aid the reliability of the SpaceX workhorse.

Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, American aerospace company headquartered in California, said on Friday that the company has made a decision to resume launches by mid of December i.e. after half year from its burning loss of its unmanned rocket that was transporting cargo to the global Space Station (ISS).

In addition, SpaceX has been developing an upgraded second stage of the Falcon 9. ORBCOMM which is also popularly known for providing worldwide Internet of Things (IoT) solutions, has confirmed that in a collaboration with Space X they are going to launch these satellites well before this January.

But the real surprise was the decision to use the next launch to put 11 small satellites into orbit for Orbcomm Inc., a mission that will allow SpaceX to conduct what it described as an “on-orbit test of the second stage” engine-restart system following deployment of the spacecraft.

SpaceX said “all parties have mutually agreed” to the arrangement to schedule SES after the anticipated Orbcomm launch. This next dedicated launch will mark Orbcomm’s second and final OG2 mission, completing its next generation satellite constellation.

SpaceX also intends to run an Orbcomm-2 mission.

Orbcomm’s OG2 satellites are far more advanced than its current OG1 satellites and are created to provide customers with significant enhancements, such as faster message delivery, larger message sizes and better coverage at higher latitudes, while drastically increasing network capacity. That satellite must go into a higher orbit, requiring the refiring of the second-stage engines.

The SES-9 mission will take place in early December.

Marc Eisenberg, the company’s chief executive, thanked SpaceX for their dedication to the launch and expressed his excitement over the incoming launch of the last OG2 satellite.

“This change does not affect the timeline for SpaceX’s return-to-flight mission which is still targeted to take place in the next 6-8 weeks”, added SpaceX. “The SES-9 launch is now targeted for late December 2015”.