SpaceX’s Starship rocket makes its fourth test flight from Texas
6 June 2024, 15:24
The world’s largest and most powerful rocket is almost 400ft tall.
SpaceX’s mega Starship rocket completed its first full test flight Thursday, returning to Earth without exploding after blasting off from Texas.
The previous three test flights ended in explosions of the rocket and the spacecraft. This time, both managed to splash down in a controlled fashion.
The world’s largest and most powerful rocket — almost 400ft tall — was empty as it soared above the Gulf of Mexico and headed east on a flight to the Indian Ocean.
Splashdown confirmed! Congratulations to the entire SpaceX team on an exciting fourth flight test of Starship!
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) June 6, 2024
Minutes after Thursday morning’s lift-off, the first-stage booster separated from the spacecraft and splashed into the gulf precisely as planned, after firing its engines.
An hour later, live views showed parts of the spacecraft breaking away during the intense heat of re-entry, but it remained intact enough to transmit data all the way to its targeted splashdown site in the Indian Ocean.
“And we have splashdown!” SpaceX launch commentator Kate Tice announced from Mission Control at company headquarters in California.
It was a critical milestone in the company’s plan to eventually return Starship’s Super Heavy booster to its launch site for reuse.
Liftoff of Starship! pic.twitter.com/2Z1PdNPYPG
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) June 6, 2024
This time, SpaceX is looking to avoid explosions by controlling the descents. SpaceX came close in March, but lost contact with the spacecraft as it flew out of space and blew up short of its goal.
The booster also ruptured in flight, a quarter of a mile above the Gulf.
Last year’s two test flights ended in explosions shortly after blasting off from the southern tip of Texas near the Mexican border. The first one left a crater in the pad at Boca Chica Beach and threw debris for thousands of feet.
SpaceX upgraded the software and made some rocket-flyback changes to improve the odds.
Starship coasting in space pic.twitter.com/kphbuXuEMr
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) June 6, 2024
The Federal Aviation Administration signed off on Tuesday on this fourth demo, saying all safety requirements had been met.
Starship is designed to be fully reusable, which is why SpaceX wanted to control the booster’s entry into the Gulf and the spacecraft’s descent into the Indian Ocean — it is intended as practice for planned future landings. Nothing will be recovered from Thursday’s flight.
Nasa has ordered a pair of Starships for two moon-landing missions by astronauts later this decade. Each moon crew will rely on Nasa’s own rocket and capsule to leave Earth, but meet Starship in lunar orbit for the ride down to the surface.
SpaceX is already selling tourist trips around the moon. The first private lunar customer, a Japanese tycoon, pulled out of the trip with his entourage last week, citing the oft-delayed schedule.
SpaceX’s founder and chief executive has grander plans: Mr Musk envisions fleets of Starships launching people and the infrastructure necessary to build a city on Mars.
