Falcon 9 is a two-stage rocket
designed and manufactured by SpaceX for the reliable and safe transport
of satellites and the Dragon spacecraft into orbit. As the first rocket
completely developed in the 21st century, Falcon 9 was designed from the
ground up for maximum reliability. Falcon 9’s simple two-stage
configuration minimizes the number of separation events -- and with nine
first-stage engines, it can safely complete its mission even in the
event of an engine shutdown.Falcon 9
made history in 2012 when it delivered Dragon into the correct orbit for
rendezvous with the International Space Station, making SpaceX the
first commercial company ever to visit the station. Since then SpaceX
has made multiple flights to the space station, both delivering and
returning cargo for NASA. Falcon 9, along with the Dragon spacecraft,
was designed from the outset to deliver humans into space and under an
agreement with NASA, SpaceX is actively working toward that goal.
Falcon 9 delivers payloads to space aboard the Dragon spacecraft or inside a composite fairing.
Dragon carries cargo in the spacecraft’s
pressurized capsule and unpressurized trunk, which can also accommodate
secondary payloads. In the future, Dragon will carry astronauts in the
pressurized capsule as well.
The payload fairing is for the delivery of
satellites to destinations in low Earth orbit (LEO), geosynchronous
transfer orbit (GTO) and beyond.
The interstage is a composite structure that connects the first and second stages and holds the release and separation system. Falcon 9 uses an all-pneumatic stage separation system for low-shock, highly reliable separation that can be tested on the ground, unlike pyrotechnic systems used on most launch vehicles.
Falcon 9’s first stage incorporates nine Merlin engines and aluminum-lithium alloy tanks containing liquid oxygen and rocket-grade kerosene (RP-1) propellant. After ignition, a
hold-before-release system ensures that all engines are verified for full-thrust performance before the rocket is released for flight. Then,
with thrust greater than five 747s at full power, the Merlin engines launch the rocket to space. Unlike airplanes, a rocket's thrust actually
increases with altitude; Falcon 9 generates more than 1.7 million pounds of thrust at sea level but gets up to over 1.8 million pounds of
thrust in the vacuum of space. The first stage engines are gradually throttled near the end of first-stage flight to limit launch vehicle
acceleration as the rocket’s mass decreases with the burning of fuel.
Dragon is a fully autonomous spacecraft designed to transport cargo and ultimately people to and from orbit.
Dragon Spacecraft & Trunk
8.1m (26.6 ft) height, 3.7m (12 ft) diameter
Composite Fairing 13.1m (43 ft) height, 5.2m (17.1 ft) diameter
The second stage, powered by a single Merlin vacuum engine, delivers Falcon 9’s payload to the desired orbit. The second stage engine ignites a few seconds after stage separation,
and can be restarted multiple times to place multiple payloads into different orbits. For maximum reliability, the second stage has
redundant igniter systems. Like the first stage, the second stage is made from a high-strength aluminum-lithium alloy.
