Hawthorne-based SpaceX said Monday a flawed strut in the second stage of its Falcon 9 rocket led to an explosion in June that ended a resupply mission to the International Space Station.
The strut, a supporting piece of hardware, was designed to handle 10,000 pounds of force but failed at only 2,000 pounds at 138 seconds into the flight, causing the rocket to explode. It was the first failure after 18 successful launches.
“Despite the fact that these struts have been used on all previous Falcon 9 flights and are certified to withstand well beyond the expected loads during flight, SpaceX will no longer use these particular struts for flight applications,” the company said.
The company said the investigation is continuing but it expects flights to resume by the end of the year.
SpaceX also has a contract to build a manned spacecraft for the Falcon 9, and noted that “the vehicle will be even safer as we begin to carry U.S. astronauts to the International Space Station in 2017.”