Written by via dnyuz.com
SpaceX is down a rocket booster after a Christmas snafu.
One of its Falcon 9 boosters, B1058, tipped over after landing on its drone ship while being transported back to Cape Canaveral, Florida, according to SpaceX. The booster, an older model that lacked some of the auto-stabilization leg features, fell over due to rough rough waters and turbulent winds, the company said.
Wind and turbulent waters can make landing more difficult, SpaceX’s VP of launch, Kiko Dontchev, wrote on X.
“Tippy boosters occur when you get a certain set of landing conditions that lead to the legs having uneven loading,” Dontchev wrote. “Heavy wind or sea state then cause the booster to teeter and slide which can lead to even worse leg loading.”
“We will make lemonade out of lemons and learn as much as possible,” Dontchev added.