Official: SpaceX explosion nearly destroyed asteroid-seeking OSIRIS-REx spacecraft

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The Sept. 1 explosion that destroyed a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and $200 million communications satellite very nearly destroyed NASA’s asteroid-seeking OSIRIS-REx spacecraft, an official has said.

OSIRIS-REx was sitting atop an Atlas V rocket at an adjoining facility, set to launch a week later, when the SpaceX rocket exploded during a static test, NASA said.

In a release, 45th Space Wing mission support group commander Lt. Col. Greg Lindsey, detailed the emergency response to the explosion at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

Included in his description was information on how technicians had to fight to save OSIRIS-REx as emergency personnel put out fires from the SpaceX explosion.

As his teams responded to the explosion, Lindsey was told that the cooling system at Launch Complex 41 was losing pressure.

“Without those chillers, the spacecraft for the next launch (OSIRIS-REx) would be lost,” he said. “Needless to say, at this point I had to reestablish our priorities and get a team working on a way … to allow access for technicians to enter in order to make the necessary repairs.”

As Lindsey and his personnel were developing a plan, there was a critical loss of pressure at Launch Complex 41 “and technicians had to get to (OSIRIS-REx) immediately.”

With assistance from Kennedy Space Center, a response team from the 45th Space Wing was able to circumvent the site of the explosion, get to Launch Complex 41 and save OSIRIS-REx, Lindsey said.

“(We got) the required support to the spacecraft in plenty of time to not only save the spacecraft, but to keep the planned launch on schedule,” he said.

While saving the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft was important, more concerning was the safety of crews responding to the explosion, Lindsey said.

“Space is inherently dangerous. On this day we were faced with a difficult challenge, but one we were ready for,” he said. “Moving forward, there will be some rebuilding that is necessary, but everyone went home safe to their families that night and woke up the next morning ready to go at it again.”

The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft was successfully launched on Sept. 8.

Cox Media Group