Static Fire – Spaceflight Now

Falcon 9 rocket fires engines in key test ahead of Crew Dragon demo flight

January 25, 2019

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket sporting human-rating upgrades such as new composite pressurant tanks briefly ignited its nine Merlin engines Thursday afternoon on a launch pad at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and SpaceX later declared the pre-launch milestone complete in preparation for a critical test flight with a commercial crew capsule as soon as late February.

Video: Zoomed in view of ignition of Falcon 9 engines in prelaunch test (members only)

January 25, 2019

Watch a zoomed in view of the Falcon 9 rocket with the first Crew Dragon capsule atop, briefly fire its engines for a crucial pre-launch test on Jan. 24, 2019 at launch pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

Video: Falcon 9 with Crew Dragon briefly ignites engines (members only)

January 24, 2019

Watch as a Falcon 9 rocket with the first Crew Dragon capsule atop, briefly fired its engines for a crucial pre-launch test on Jan. 24, 2019.

Live coverage: Falcon 9 with Crew Dragon briefly fires engines in test

January 22, 2019

The Falcon 9 rocket set to launch the SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule on a test flight in February briefly ignited its Merlin main engines on pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday. The Crew Dragon test flight to the International Space Station is a precursor to the spaceship’s first mission with astronauts later this year.

All-new Falcon 9 rocket tested in Florida as SpaceX preps for back-to-back launches

December 1, 2018

An all-new SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket fired its engines Friday night on launch pad 40 at Cape Canaveral, the opening act in a busy weekend of SpaceX launch preps leading up to a pair of blastoffs Sunday and Tuesday from California’s Central Coast and Florida’s Space Coast, respectively.

Video: Falcon 9 fires engines at pad 39A ahead of Es’hail 2 launch (members only)

November 13, 2018

Watch a video replay of Monday night’s hotfire of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The rocket is set for launch Thursday with Qatar’s Es’hail 2 communications satellite.

SpaceX fires Falcon 9 booster on pad 39A, aims for comsat launch Thursday

November 13, 2018

SpaceX test-fired a Falcon 9 rocket Monday night at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, clearing the way for a launch Thursday with Qatar’s Es’hail 2 communications satellite, the first daytime liftoff from Florida’s Space Coast in more than six months.

Live coverage: Falcon 9 rocket test-fired at Kennedy Space Center

November 12, 2018

SpaceX test-fired a previously-flown Falcon 9 rocket Monday evening on pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, setting the stage for a launch later this week carrying the Japanese-built, Qatari-owned Es’hail 2 communications satellite to orbit.

SpaceX conducts engine test fire for communications satellite launch (members only)

September 6, 2018

SpaceX test fires a Falcon 9 rocket in readiness for its planned 8 September 2018 launch carrying the Telstar 18 VANTAGE communications satellite.

Hotfire test keeps SpaceX on schedule for weekend launch

September 5, 2018

A brief test-firing of a Falcon 9 rocket Wednesday morning kept SpaceX on track for a launch Saturday night from Cape Canaveral with a communications satellite to be jointly used by Telesat and APT Satellite of Hong Kong.