SpaceX's Starship Flight 9 marched towards our web interface, but then management of the colossal spaceship was abruptly lost (videoclip)
SpaceX's Starship Mega-Rocket Faces Another Setback in Ninth Test Flight
In a bid to advance space exploration, SpaceX launched its Starship mega-rocket for the ninth time today (May 27). The aim of the test flight was to showcase the first significant reuse of Starship hardware – a milestone in SpaceX's ambitious plans for the vehicle.
However, the mission ended in disappointment as both the Starship and Super Heavy Booster were lost. The Starship reached an altitude, an improvement compared to recent flights, but fell short of its overall objectives. Meanwhile, SpaceX lost control of the Super Heavy Booster, which ended up breaking apart shortly after beginning its landing burn.
Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, highlighted the improvement in the Starship reaching its scheduled ship engine cutoff, as stated in a social media post. However, he acknowledged leaks causing main tank pressure loss during the coastal and re-entry phase. Musk also expressed optimism about the future, hinting at three subsequent Starship test launches that could take place every three to four weeks.
The Starship, with its Super Heavy counterpart, is being developed by SpaceX as the most powerful rocket ever built. Its ultimate goal is to aid humanity in colonizing the moon and Mars, among other tasks. The two stages – Super Heavy and the 171-foot-tall Starship – are both designed for rapid, fully reusable flights. Both rely on SpaceX's new Raptor engine, with 33 engines powering the Super Heavy and six for the Starship.
Earlier, a fully stacked Starship had been launched eight times, with two flights happening this year – on January 16 and March 6. These prior flights resulted in mixed outcomes. Dan Huot, from SpaceX's communications team, emphasized the challenges involved, adding that the team was encountering bumps and turns, but the sight of the Starship in flight was a significant moment.
On the previous two flights (Flight 7 and Flight 8), Super Heavy performed flawlessly, but Starship encountered explosions less than 10 minutes after launch, raining debris over the Turks and Caicos Islands and The Bahamas. Although these two failures occurred at similar times during the flights, they had different root causes. Flight 7 was likely affected by a powerful "harmonic response" leading to propellant leaks, while Flight 8 experienced a hardware failure in a Raptor engine.
In an effort to prevent such issues in future flights, SpaceX made significant hardware changes and conducted several ground engine trials in Texas, with Flight 9 marking the test of these improvements. The mission lifted off from SpaceX's Starbase site at 7:37 p.m. EDT (2337 GMT; 6:37 p.m. local Texas time) and made history as the first-ever reuse of a Super Heavy Booster.
Although the Super Heavy booster broke apart almost immediately after beginning its landing burn, the mission provided valuable insights that will aid future improvements. SpaceX has plans to relaunch quickly, emphasizing that they learn, iterate, and iterate until they figure it out – a testament to their resilient approach towards space travel innovation.
The setback in SpaceX's ninth test flight of the Starship mega-rocket brings new challenges to the forefront of its innovative space exploration agenda, calling for substantial discussions in the realm of space-and-astronomy and technology. Amid the news of yet another mishap, SpaceX's future plans for using the technologies in the realm of science, including colonizing the moon and Mars, continue to stimulate fresh conversations in the history books, as well as among researchers in these fields.
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