SpaceX has canceled the eighth test flight of Starship rocket in connection with an indefinite problem with the rocket system core. This means that the start will be delayed by at least 24 hours. On the night of Monday to Tuesday, the building was to leave the Boca Chica base in Texas and after an hour to launch at the west coast of Australia.
According to the information made available by SpaceX, the problem appeared 40 seconds before the starting start for Monday. The company's spokesman, Dan Huot, explained that one problem with the stream rudder has already been solved and the company is currently working on another problem. The start can take place on Tuesday or in the following days, depending on how serious the failure will turn out.
“We won't start today. We've solved one problem with a stream rudder and we are working on another” – quotes AFP HUCA.
The test flight was to be the first start of the Starship rocket since the January mission, which ended in a failure after just eight minutes of flight. Then the upper part of the rocket exploded over the Caribbean, causing the rain of fiery shards over Turks and Caicos. After this incident, a federal investigation began.
More on this topic: Spacex has permission to LOT Starship. The investigation in the explosion continues
The Starship rocket broke up during the seventh test flightMichael Gonzalez/PAP/EPA
Improvements were made
The rocket was to set off from the Spacex Starbase base at Boca Chica in Texas. The company was to broadcast the event live. The starting window for Sharship began on Monday at 17.30 (half an hour after midnight in Poland).
For the needs of the eighth test flight, SpaceX introduced several improvements in the upper level of a spacecraft, increasing its reliability and performance. The mission plan assumed that the flight would last just over an hour. It was supposed to be another attempt to catch the compartment of a load -bearing rocket through the starting tower. So far it has been done twice. SpaceX also wanted to use Starlink simulators, designed on the pattern of the latest generation satellites. The devices are to burn after entering the atmosphere.
Photos from the third Starship test flight in March 2024Joe Marino/Newscom/PAP
To conquer space
Starship is 123 meters high. Ultimately, it is designed so that it can be used more than just once. This is a key element of the SpaceX vision and its owner Elon Musk in the conquest plans space. However, before these ambitious goals are achieved, the company must prove that the rocket is suitable for flight and is safe for manned missions.
Starship rocketPAP/Maciej Zieliński
Source of the main photo: X.com/elonmusk