Shulou(Shulou.com)11/24 Report--

September 29-US rocket launch company Astra announced on Wednesday that it will no longer launch the remaining TROPICS satellites for NASA, but will still launch other similar scientific missions for the agency.

More than three months ago, Astra's first launch of the TROPICS (High time Resolution observation of precipitation structures and Storm intensity small Satellite Constellation) satellite failed because the engine of the second stage of its rocket was shut down prematurely before sending the payload into orbit.

The TROPICS program includes three launches and aims to send a total of six CubeSats satellites into space. These satellites will be used to observe variables such as humidity and pressure in the storm system. This demand was particularly urgent when Hurricane Ian made landfall on the west coast of Florida.

Astra was awarded the TROPICS satellite launch contract in February 2021, with a total value of $7.95 million.

Astra made its first launch using its Rocket 3.3carrier rocket, a system designed to be lightweight and low-cost to launch. But just weeks after that launch failure led to the loss of the NASA satellite, Astra announced a complete change in its business plan.

The company said it would no longer use Rocket 3.3 to launch, but would hand over all launch tasks to the larger Rocket 4. Astra CEO Chris Kemp (Chris Kemp) revealed that Rocket 4 has a payload capacity of 600kg and is still under development.

"after the failure of the first launch of the TROPICS satellite, NASA discussed the remaining launch tasks with Astra," NASA said in a statement. Astra then informed NASA that it intended to deactivate Rocket 3.3 and said it might not resume launch before the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season. "

The remaining 12 companies that provide launch services through the NASA risk level dedicated and shared launch Mission (VADR) program will be able to compete for TROPICS satellite launch contracts. These companies include ABL Space Systems, Rocket Lab, Relativity, Firefly and Virgin Rail.

Astra also explained the failure of the first launch of the TROPICS satellite, saying that the early shutdown of the second stage of the rocket was due to "higher-than-normal fuel consumption." The company added that engineers would conduct additional tests to verify the root cause of the anomaly, but they had narrowed the problem to the second stage engine.

Astra shares have fallen sharply in the past six months. At the beginning of May, the company's shares traded at more than $3.25 and are now trading at $0.68. Astra shares began trading on the open market last June after merging with special purpose buyout firm Holicity.

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