Flames return to LC-39a

Photo of static fire at LC-39a
(Photo: Matthew Travis/Zero-G News)

After almost 5 1/2 years fire has returned to the historic Launch Complex 39a. SpaceX completed the hold-down firing of the rockets 9 Merlin 1D engines for approximately 3.5 seconds. The static fire was done 6 days prior to the launch of their Dragon spacecraft to the ISS for the CRS-10 mission. The rocket produced nearly 2 million pounds of thrust during the firing at full power. This static fire was set as a milestone for SpaceX as it double-checked the readiness of the Falcon 9 to launch this Saturday.