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The Falcon 9 ocean booster landing tests are a series of controlled-descent flight tests conducted by SpaceX beginning in 2013 and continuing into 2015. The program aims to execute a controlled-descent re-entry into Earth's atmosphere after Falcon 9 v1.1 rocket boosters complete the boost phase of an orbital flight. Some tests include an attempt at softly landing the booster of the rocket in the ocean or on an Autonomous spaceport drone ship, ships commissioned by SpaceX to provide a hard landing surface for the returning booster stages.〔 Test flights began in September 2013. As of April 2015, seven test flights have been conducted. The ocean booster descent tests are a part of the larger SpaceX reusable launch system development program, which also includes a number of technology development activities and low-altitude test flights at their McGregor, Texas facility. The program's goal is to privately-develop reusable rocket technology, including vertical-landing technology. The boosters used on orbital launches are typically discarded in the ocean once the ascent is complete. A reusable rocket "would dramatically reduce the cost of launches," according to CNBC.〔 〕 The over-water tests occur in both the Pacific Ocean, south of Vandenberg Air Force Base, and the Atlantic Ocean, east of Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The first flight test occurred on September 29, 2013, after the second stage with the CASSIOPE and nanosat payloads separated from the booster. Descent and simulated landing tests have continued into 2014 and 2015, with the second flight test having occurred on April 18, 2014, and the fifth, sixth, and seventh tests occurred in January, February, and April 2015, respectively. == History == SpaceX first announced that it would instrument and equip subsequent Falcon 9 first-stages as controlled descent test vehicles, with plans for over-water propulsively-decelerated simulated landings, in March 2013. They stated at the time that they expected to begin these flight tests in 2013, with an attempt to return the vehicle to the launch site for a powered landing no earlier than mid-2014.〔 〕 In the event, they did execute the first flight test in 2013, but continued the over-water testing into 2015. Following analysis of the flight test data from the first booster-controlled descent in September 2013, SpaceX announced it had successfully tested a large amount of new technology on the flight, and that coupled with the technology advancements made on the Grasshopper low-altitude landing demonstrator, they were ready to test a full recovery of the booster stage. The first flight test was successful; SpaceX said it was "able to successfully transition from vacuum through hypersonic, through supersonic, through transonic, and light the engines all the way and control the stage all the way through (atmosphere )". Musk said that "the next attempt to () the Falcon 9 first stage () be on the fourth flight of the upgraded rocket. This would be () third commercial Dragon cargo flight to ISS." This second flight test took place during the April 2014 Dragon flight to the ISS. SpaceX attached landing legs to the first stage, decelerated the stage over the ocean and attempted a simulated landing over the water, following the ignition of the second stage on the third cargo resupply mission contracted to NASA. The first stage was successfully slowed down sufficiently for a soft landing over the Atlantic Ocean.〔 SpaceX announced in February 2014 that they intended to continue the tests to land the first-stage booster in the ocean until precision control from hypersonic all the way through subsonic regimes has been proven.〔 Further tests starting with the first stage of the CRS-5 vehicle have involved the Autonomous Spaceport Drone Ship. The ship has been used for two returning cores as of April 2015: CRS-5 and CRS-6. An attempt was made with the returning first stage from the DSCOVR mission, but the landing was called off due to abnormally high sea conditions. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Falcon 9 ocean booster landing tests」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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