-
Rocket 3.1 will take off from Kodiak, Alaska on Friday evening.
John Cross for Astra
-
The initial flight of the rocket from the pad looked smooth.
John Cross for Astra
-
But in about 15 seconds or so of flight it began to c c significantly.
John Cross for Astra
-
Astra arranged its rocket with a team of only six people.
John Cross for Astra
-
This was the company’s second attempt to launch the vehicle.
John Cross for Astra
-
Astra Ground Systems uses mobile infrastructure for equipment.
John Cross for Astra
After months of technical and weather delays, Astra launched its first orbital rocket from a spaceport in southern Alaska on Friday night.
The five main engines of the stubborn, small rocket ignited several seconds before the liftoff, and then the booster Rocket 1.1 began to climb into the harsh evening sky. Rocket 1.1 flew straight and accurately for about 15 seconds before it began to move slightly back and forth.
Later, the company’s co-founder and chief technical officer, Adam London, explains that the problem with the rocket’s computerized steering system introduced a slight roll oscillation. As this happened, the vehicle began to deviate from its planned route.
At the time, it looked like the guide system might be able to wet the roll, but the rocket was getting dangerously close to passing outside its controlled flight area. To prevent a rocket from potentially entering a protected area, it was ordered to shut down its engines. They burned for about 30 seconds, or a little less than a quarter of the planned first stage burn.
“Overall, we’re very excited about what we’ve learned,” Lunden told reporters Saturday during a teleconference.
Based on a preliminary review of the data, Astra officials said they believe the problem also occurred due to a flight software issue, rather than the hardware issue of the first phase of the rocket. Engineers with the California-based company plan a “detailed” investigation to make sure they understand the root cause of the failure.
Prior to the launch, Astra was quite clear that it did not expect this mission – which had no payload – to reach orbit. The company’s philosophy is that the best way to develop a rocket quickly, and at a low cost, is to test its booster in flight. The company plans to reach orbit in the third of three test flights, and its chief executive Chris Kempe said efforts to launch Friday night keep Astra on the route.
“This rocket is a completely new system, none of which has ever flown before,” Kempe said. “Almost no part of this rocket has ever flown. This is a great result.”
Founded in October 2016, Astra has limited its spending to about 100 million dollars to date, keeping its head count to more than 100 people. Kempe said the company expects failure, as the best way to get data about the rocket’s performance is not to do endless simulations on the ground – the company’s guidance and research system tests missed the roll point – but to test the hardware in flight.
“For us, learning is not what is expensive,” he said. “TIt has things that are very difficult to test on the ground. “
Equipped with additional data, the Astra team will now prepare Rocket 2.2 for flight tests. The booster is already being assembled at the company’s factory in Alameda, California. The first phase for Rocket 2.3 is similar to its predecessor, but the company has upgraded its second phase to give it a better chance of reaching orbit. The flight “could be real soon,” Kempe said.
Image list by John Krauss for Astra
