FAILURE: Relativity Terran 1 Test Flight : CCSFS SLC-16 : 23 Mar 2023 03:25 UTC

[FutureSpaceTourist]

T-5

[FutureSpaceTourist]

T-4

[FutureSpaceTourist]

T-2

[FutureSpaceTourist]

Range is green. Flight computer in countdown

[FutureSpaceTourist]

ABORT! So scrub

[FutureSpaceTourist]

Webcast has ended

[FutureSpaceTourist]

Commiserations to Relativity who tried so hard again today. Lots of valuable experience and live to fight another day soon.

[zubenelgenubi]

Thank you NSF webcasters!

And, thank you, FST, for today's launch thread coverage!


Perhaps Relativity will try again tomorrow?

Cancel-and-replace NGA notice.

Note that Sunday's backup opportunity has the same local time, but is an hour earlier UTC due to the change of local time from EST to EDT.

082241Z MAR 23
NAVAREA IV 258/23(11,26).
WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC.
FLORIDA.
1. HAZARDOUS OPERATIONS, ROCKET LAUNCHING
   111800Z TO 112122Z MAR, ALTERNATE
   121700Z TO 122022Z MAR IN AREAS BOUND BY:
   A. 28-34.38N 080-34.27W, 29-17.00N 078-11.00W,
      28-35.00N 077-54.00W, 28-22.00N 074-01.00W,
      28-28.00N 073-39.00W, 28-26.00N 073-13.00W,
      28-14.00N 072-56.00W, 28-08.00N 071-49.00W,
      28-01.00N 071-49.00W, 28-06.00N 072-57.00W,
      27-57.00N 073-11.00W, 27-57.00N 073-43.00W,
      28-09.00N 074-01.00W, 28-20.00N 077-57.00W,
      27-49.00N 078-38.00W, 28-27.00N 080-33.00W.
   B. 28-01.00N 074-36.00W, 28-29.00N 074-36.00W,
      28-43.00N 074-00.00W, 28-43.00N 073-20.00W,
      28-24.00N 072-52.00W, 28-04.00N 072-52.00W,
      27-46.00N 073-20.00W, 27-44.00N 074-05.00W.
2. CANCEL NAVAREA IV 232/23.
3. CANCEL THIS MSG 122122Z MAR 23.

[zubenelgenubi]

Why the abort?

ABORT! So scrub

https://twitter.com/cbs_spacenews/status/1634660777083772928

[DaveS]

They didn't state the reason for this abort or the earlier one.

[FutureSpaceTourist]

https://twitter.com/relativityspace/status/1634661606368985090

Based on initial data review, vehicle is healthy. More info to follow on cause of aborts today. Thanks for playing. #GLHF

[FutureSpaceTourist]

Great and quick transparency from Relativity:

https://twitter.com/relativityspace/status/1634669031197163521

🧵 A quick breakdown of the reasons for our aborts during terminal counts today:

twitter.com/relativityspace/status/1634669284990304256

During abort #1: It was a corner case in the stage separation automation a few seconds before T-0 that properly aborted at T .5 seconds.

https://twitter.com/relativityspace/status/1634669618697584642

Then, the team pushed an update to the vehicle automation, successfully recycled the vehicle, and secured a new T-0 time, which was an instantaneous window, given it was during the last minute of our launch window today at 16:00 ET.

twitter.com/relativityspace/status/1634669850248323072

During abort #2: At T-45 seconds, we had an automated abort on stage 2 fuel pressure, which was only one PSI low.

https://twitter.com/relativityspace/status/1634670086974844928

The team went HARD today and we intend to do so during our next attempt. More to come on the new launch date and window soon. #GLHF

[nicp]

Wow, these guys are good.
I was gutted when there was some idiot on the range. I hope they get charged a million bucks or something.
Then we get to T-0.5 and have ignition and an abort, then they recycle, sadly another abort.
I really didn't think they would even try after the engines had been lit, but I was wrong!
The launch crew must be shattered.

Thanks to all here on the forum and on the YouTube channel. Stellar coverage as always.

[chopsticks]

On the bright side, they are learning things.

Scrubs and aborts kind of suck, but they are to be expected in a brand new LV.

[GewoonLukas_]

Great and quick transparency from Relativity:

https://twitter.com/relativityspace/status/1634669031197163521

🧵 A quick breakdown of the reasons for our aborts during terminal counts today:

twitter.com/relativityspace/status/1634669284990304256

During abort #1: It was a corner case in the stage separation automation a few seconds before T-0 that properly aborted at T .5 seconds.

https://twitter.com/relativityspace/status/1634669618697584642

Then, the team pushed an update to the vehicle automation, successfully recycled the vehicle, and secured a new T-0 time, which was an instantaneous window, given it was during the last minute of our launch window today at 16:00 ET.

twitter.com/relativityspace/status/1634669850248323072

During abort #2: At T-45 seconds, we had an automated abort on stage 2 fuel pressure, which was only one PSI low.

https://twitter.com/relativityspace/status/1634670086974844928

The team went HARD today and we intend to do so during our next attempt. More to come on the new launch date and window soon. #GLHF

https://twitter.com/thetimellis/status/1634683707612069889

Engines were all good

[FutureSpaceTourist]

https://twitter.com/alexphysics13/status/1634702293508530179

New marine notices indicate Relativity's next potential attempt at launching their first Terran 1 rocket will be no earlier than March 16th within the same 1PM to 4PM EDT window.

Reminder though that tonight clocks change in Florida and they move from EST (UTC-5) to EDT (UTC-4)

[GewoonLukas_]

Now NET 10:00 UTC

New marine notices indicate launch window has changed. Launch date would be no earlier than March 16th but window would open as early as 6am EDT. Start buying some coffee...

https://twitter.com/Alexphysics13/status/1635371900280115201

[Ken the Bin]

Based on the weather forecast, Relativity is now targeting March 17 at 05:00 UTC (01:00 EDT).

L-2 weather forecast. 95% 'Go' for March 17. Upper-Level Winds risk is Low-Moderate.

[FutureSpaceTourist]

https://twitter.com/jeff_foust/status/1635644655638290432

Asked Tim after the panel about the next Terran 1 launch attempt; Relativity is still working to line up a date with the FAA in the coming days. He said he feels confident they'll be able to launch on the next attempt.

[kdhilliard]

Based on the weather forecast, Relativity is now targeting March 17 at 05:00 UTC (01:00 EDT).
...

From 1 in the afternoon to apparently 1 in the morning.
Interesting.


From earlier:

...
twitter.com/relativityspace/status/1634669284990304256

During abort #1: It was a corner case in the stage separation automation a few seconds before T-0 that properly aborted at T .5 seconds.

twitter.com/relativityspace/status/1634669618697584642

Then, the team pushed an update to the vehicle automation, successfully recycled the vehicle, and secured a new T-0 time, which was an instantaneous window, given it was during the last minute of our launch window today at 16:00 ET.

...

I've been hoping to see some hypothesizing about this first abort, as I've had a hard time wrapping my head around a possible cause.

* What would the separation system be monitoring which could trigger an abort?
Supply voltage, presumably, but also pneumatic actuator tank pressure?  Anything else?
"Corner case" suggests multiple parameters, none of which alone would necessarily trigger an abort, but which taken together are out of limits.

* I could understand some effect of engine start (power draw? vibration?) causing a change to some parameter the stage separation automation was monitoring, but doesn't "a few seconds before T-0" imply the problem existed prior to engine start?

* Wouldn't you time your abort triggers such that if anything is out of range late in the count an abort would be triggered *before* engine start, so you don't experience a hot abort in return for the hope that the problem will resolve itself in the final few seconds?

(I know the forum often goes too far in speculating the cause of aborts and failures based on little to no information, but I was hoping someone could suggest any possible cause here consistent with what little we do know, all while understanding that we can't conclusively guess at the actual cause.)