For the coming CRS-7 mission to the ISS, where exactly will SpaceX position the ASDS for the Falcon 9R first stage recovery attempt?
Obviously it will be in the Atlantic Ocean.
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Sign up to join this communityFor the coming CRS-7 mission to the ISS, where exactly will SpaceX position the ASDS for the Falcon 9R first stage recovery attempt?
Obviously it will be in the Atlantic Ocean.
SpaceX has not yet published the specific locations for landing for CRS-7, however we can make a reasonable guess by looking at the previous landing attempt.
Here is the Hazard Map of the previous landing attempt
It outlines the Keep Out Areas SpaceX requests for each launch. The orange area is for early termination safety. The red area is the expected splashdown zone of the first stage. The ASDS is positioned towards the close end of this region because the Falcon 9 performs a boostback manuever to get closer to shore. The far right end of the region contains the splashpoint for the first stage on a ballistic trajectory.
The ASDS is approximately 225 miles from Cape Canaveral. The exact position of the barge for CRS-7 will be available once the FCC Application has been filed for that mission
Sources:
/u/Darga69 on Reddit for making the maps
FCC Application for Barge Landing
The ASDS JRTI (Based on Marmac 304 hull, so not the original ASDS which was based on the Marmac 300 hull) will be downrange of the launch, appropriate to catch the returning first stage booster.
You can follow the track of the ISS for Jun 26th, and work backwards from there.
SpaceX will issue a Notice To Mariners that they need to stay clear of the area where they will attempt landing. That will provide sufficient details to narrow it down to a couple of square kilometers.
The exact location is probably unknowable to us, at this time.