SpaceX's next Starship launch could take place in October after securing a launch license from the FAA, according to statements made by an agency official yesterday. Her statements follow SpaceX's near completion of all the check items for its Starship rocket responsible for the April test flight having to self-destruct in mid-air. Starship is the world's largest rocket in development, and a list of the items that SpaceX's chief Elon Musk shared showed that most of the problems were with its engine and associated components. However, SpaceX seems to have made these upgrades with only a few items remaining on its checklist before the second Starship rocket is ready for launch.
FAA Official Assures Teams Are Working With SpaceX To Ensure Next Test Flight
The aftermath of the Starship April test flight had left some quarters questioning whether the rocket could make another test attempt soon. Most of these concerns stemmed from the damage to the launch pad, an added complication that SpaceX would have to deal with, even if its rockets were primed for rapid test flights.
However, within five months, SpaceX has not only shipped Starship back to the launch pad, but it has also added a hot staging interstage, rebuilt the pad, installed a water deluge system and conducted two static fires of the first stage booster. This leaves most of the Starship system in the final stages of a second test flight, in a rapid turnaround that has been a consistent feature of the Starship program.
SpaceX's Starship program is also "hardware rich, " meaning the firm has multiple prototypes in development. Out of these, the newer rockets also have better upgrades, which increases their chance of making a successful orbital flight. An orbital demonstration is a crucial component of the Starship program's long-term viability since it will place the firm in a position to attempt rocket fuelling in orbit through later tests.
Orbital fueling is an important feature of the Starship program since it is essential to NASA's plans to land the first humans on the Moon. Astronauts for the Artemis mission will not fly to SpaceX on Starship. Instead, they will take the NASA SLS rocket and then board the second stage Starship in lunar orbit. To fly to the Moon, the second stage will need fuel, and SpaceX will add this through a tanker Starship that fills up the empty ship in Earth orbit.
An orbital fueler allows Starship to transport more payload to orbit since the second stage clears the toughest part of its journey with less weight. It also means that compared to other lunar landers, Starship is significantly larger and capable of helping NASA establish a lunar base.
As for the next Starship orbital test flight, the FAA's acting Administrator, Polly Trottenberg, shared yesterday that the launch might occur in October. Quoted by Reuters, she shared:
We're working well with them and have been in good discussions. Teams are working together and I think we're optimistic sometime next month.
Before a Starship flight or even conduct a static fire, several indicators show that SpaceX is about to launch a rocket. These include FAA's communications with pilots looking to through the airspace near the test site, NASA's WB-57 aircraft if the agency wants to capture detailed footage of the test attempt and local authorities' road and beach closers to create a safe perimeter around the rocket.
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