For the third time, SpaceX once again pushed back the Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule's launch on Friday, Dec. 15, at 10:35 a.m. EST. It has been said that the reason behind it is to do more additional inspections and cleaning following the company engineers' detection of particles located in the booster's second-stage fuel system.
"Taking additional time for the team to conduct full inspections and cleanings due to detection of particles in 2nd stage fuel system," SpaceX explained in a tweet. Now, the aerospace manufacturer and space transport services company is looking forward to CRS-13 launch from SLC-40 on the mentioned date. "Next launch opportunity would be no earlier than late December," it said.
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule are on a mission to deliver supplies, cargo, and other science experiments for NASA. It was supposed to be launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on Wednesday, Dec. 13.
However, this has been the second launch delay in just two days. Originally, the booster was set to take off on Friday, Dec. 8. It was later pushed backed to Tuesday, Dec. 12, and has been delayed again.
Overall, this has been the third delay for the SpaceX mission called CSR-13, which means "commercial resupply service." This should be the 13<sup>th delivery flight mission to the International Space Station for NASA under the SpaceX's resupply contract with the federal agency.
The Dragon capsule is said to deliver almost 4,800 lbs. or 2,177 kilograms of food, supplies, and science gear. Also, there might be some Christmas presents for the astronauts. This, too, is supposed to be the first mission to launch from Launch Complex 40 since the explosion that had damaged the pad's structure last September 2016.
SpaceX needed to reconstruct and make the complex more modernized. With that, the pad is now hardened and has an underground infrastructure. It also has an improved cooling system and the likeness of other pads the company has. This move is also said to lessen complexity.
