Saturday saw SpaceX transport Ship 24, their most flight-ready Starship rocket, to South Texas. Sources stated a launch might happen as early as April 10.
The firm put its enormous “Super Heavy” first stage onto a pad launch mount earlier this week. Next, hoist the Starship upper stage onto the first stage. These cars have been piled for testing, but this should be the last time before launch.
Technicians have shielded the launch mount and tower from Super Heavy’s 33 Raptor engine heat in recent weeks. NASA’s Saturn V and Space Launch System rockets have roughly half the thrust of the launch vehicle.
With this work mostly done, SpaceX’s huge rocket awaits FAA authorization to launch. A source claimed excellent work is being made toward issuing such a license during the first two weeks of April, despite regulatory uncertainty.
NASA may also reserve its high-altitude WB-57 aircraft for Starship test flight observations on April 10 and 11. NASA plans to utilize SpaceX’s huge rocket to place humans on the moon during Artemis Lunar missions.
Long-anticipated
Early February saw SpaceX hot fire the Super Heavy’s first stage. 31 of the rocket’s 33 engines fired properly. The test gave SpaceX engineers enough data to launch. The rocket and upper stage were then removed for launch mount work.
SpaceX’s Super Heavy rocket will sail east over the Gulf of Mexico after launch from Starbase. This booster test will not land. After stage separation, the Starship upper vehicle will attain orbital velocity and attempt reentry over the Pacific Ocean. It will safely land in the seas north of the Hawaiian islands if all goes well.
After releasing Starship prototypes rapidly in 2020 and 2021, the business has moved more slowly at its South Texas research and test facilities. The corporation likely spent over $1 billion on a large launch-and-catch tower and ground equipment to power Starship and Super Heavy.
SpaceX does not want to risk damaging infrastructure it spent over a year developing and testing since so many assets are concentrated near the Gulf of Mexico. The rebuilding would delay the Starship launch campaign by months. It would likely rekindle regulatory concerns voiced by the FAA to approve South Texas for experimental orbital launches.