2024-03-14 17:47:24
The rocket is made up of two stages: the Super Heavy propulsion stage, and above it the Starship, which by extension gives its name to the entire rocket. The two stages successfully separated a few minutes after takeoff. Super Heavy was then supposed to land softly in the Gulf of Mexico, but was not completely successful in this maneuver and experienced a “hard landing”, according to a commentator during the company’s live video.
Read also: Starship, the rocket that weighs heavily for SpaceX
The ship continued its course for about an hour. It has gone well beyond the frontier of space, reaching an altitude of more than 200 km according to the SpaceX video, followed by more than three million people. It had to fall back into the Indian Ocean to complete the test (without surviving the impact). But the ship was “lost” on its way back to Earth, one commentator said.
Impressive images captured by a camera on the craft showed it illuminated with orange plasma as it re-entered Earth’s atmosphere, driven by heat caused by friction. It was the first time that SpaceX tested the effectiveness of the spacecraft’s heat shield, made up of 18,000 black tiles, during such a flight.
Fuel transfer
Billionaire Elon Musk’s company is banking on Starship to achieve its stated goal: making humanity a multi-planetary species by installing it on Mars. Its development is also very important for NASA, which is counting on this spacecraft to land its astronauts on the Moon during its Artemis 3 mission, planned for 2026.
During the flight, SpaceX also tested the opening of the hatch which could be used in the future to release cargo, for example satellites, into space. The company also had to carry out an in-flight fuel transfer. According to the specialist press, this transfer was to take place between two tanks inside the vessel.
Also read: First takeoff of Starship, a semi-success for SpaceX
Developing this function is essential, because to reach the Moon, Starship will have to refuel once in space, thanks to a vessel previously filled by others, and serving as a sort of space service station.
Starship’s last test flight took place four months ago. The rocket’s two stages had successfully separated in flight for the first time, but then both exploded. However, the ship had already reached space. For these tests, the prototypes used do not carry any cargo. And SpaceX has already manufactured several copies of its rocket.
More risks
SpaceX’s development method is different from that of traditional companies and national space agencies. Unlike the latter operating with taxpayer money, SpaceX uses its own funds, allowing it to take more risks.
The company also boasts an iterative development technique, based on successive tests linked together at a rapid pace, even if they end in impressive balls of fire. The lessons learned then allow changes to be made quickly. With each test, “we learn something new,” Elon Musk declared in January in a speech to employees. “It’s always better to sacrifice material than to sacrifice time.” The development of SpaceX’s Falcon rockets, which with 96 successful missions in 2023 today dominate the American launch market, was also based on multiple failed tests.
Besides its disproportionate size, the real innovation of Starship is that it must ultimately be entirely reusable. Currently, only the first stage of the Falcon 9 rocket returns to land after each launch to be reused. Being able to fly the two stages of Starship multiple times will allow even more frequent launches, and for less cost, an imperative to be able to “colonize” Mars, according to Elon Musk.
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