Static Test Of Falcon 9 Booster Did Not Occur As Scheduled

It looks as if the return to flight for SpaceX will not occur on Saturday, as a planned static test of the Falcon 9 v1.2 did not take place on Wednesday as scheduled.

Spaceflight Insider reports that two to three days usually elapse between the completion of the static test and launch of the rocket.

When it does launch, the payload for the mission is 11 satellites manufactured by Orbcomm.

On Thursday, Elon Musk tweeted that the company was working towards a static fire of the rocket, but "deep cryo oxygen presenting some challenges," according to Space News.

Orbcomm tweeted Friday morning that the rocket was "still vertical. Aiming for static fire today and launch a few days after static fire complete."

SpaceX had not officially scrubbed the launch as of this writing, however a weekend launch looks very unlikely. Orbcomm said it still hopes to launch its satellites "before Christmas."

SpaceX also hopes that this flight will be the first in which it is able to recover the Falcon 9 booster, and has plans to attempt to land the first stage back at Cape Canaveral at Landing Complex 1, which had previously been Launch Complex 13.

(Image provided by Orbcomm)

FMI: www.spacex.com