SpaceX found surprising heat-shield wear after NASA astronaut mission - Business Insider - Business Insider

SpaceX discovered unexpected damage to part of its Crew Dragon space capsule after the vessel carried its first astronauts this summer, officials said on Tuesday.

The Demo-2 mission flew NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley to the International Space Station on May 30.

But after the company recovered and studied the toasted space capsule up-close, examiners spotted something unusual: deep erosion on Crew Dragon's heat shield.

It protects Crew Dragon by deflecting and absorbing heat that can reach 3,500 degrees Fahrenheit while the space capsule plummets through the atmosphere and creates superheated plasma on its return to Earth.

Koenigsmann said the affected part of the heat shield is close to "tensions ties" that connect the Crew Dragon to its large cylindrical trunk.

NASA surveyed the heat shield for damage ahead of that return flight, while the Crew Dragon capsule was still docked to the space station.

It's unclear why the excessive heat-shield erosion didn't show up on the prior demo mission, an uncrewed test flight in which Crew Dragon launched, docked to the space station, and returned to Earth with no human passengers