SpaceX has just shared a short video showing a test firing of one of its six Starship engines in preparation for the rocket’s 10th flight test.
“Single-engine static fire demonstrating an in-space burn complete as Starship prepares for our tenth flight test,” the Elon Musk-led company said in a comment accompanying the video, which was posted on X on Tuesday.
Single-engine static fire demonstrating an in-space burn complete as Starship prepares for our tenth flight test pic.twitter.com/hqyu33K8Eg
Such static fires allow engineers to check specific components and systems on the vehicle under controlled conditions, with tests like this considered crucial for identifying potential issues before proceeding with the actual launch.
The Starship, which comprises the first-stage Super Heavy booster and upper-stage Starship spacecraft, is the most powerful rocket ever to fly, and will one day be used to carry crew and cargo to the moon, and possibly to Mars, too.
The 10th test, when it takes place, will lift off from SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas.
The last Starship flight test took place on May 27, and SpaceX is hoping to cut the turnaround time to ramp up the frequency of flights as it seeks to perfect the design of the massive 120-meter-tall vehicle.
The shortest turnaround time for Starship flights so far has been 37 days, between the fifth and sixth tests, which took place on October 13 and November 19, 2024. To beat that, SpaceX will have to send the Starship skyward by July 2.
Earlier this year, SpaceX was given permission by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to conduct as many as 25 launches a year, equal to one every couple of weeks, though it’s likely to be a while before the company reaches that high frequency.
SpaceX has yet to offer any official information regarding the upcoming Starship test. Recent Starship flights have produced mixed results, though data from the missions have provided engineers with plenty of information to enable them to further refine the vehicle’s systems as it edges toward making the rocket ready for duty.
After 13 suborbital test flights and more than $15 billion in development costs, SpaceX's Starship has finally reached orbit. The 407-foot megarocket, the most powerful ever built, lifted off from Starbase, Texas, on Monday and delivered its first real payload on it's 14th attempt. The celebration came with an asterisk, though, since SpaceX had to cut the planned 10-hour mission to roughly three hours.
https://twitter.com/SpaceX/status/2104601695711904180
SpaceX is finally ready to give Starship its biggest test yet. The company says the massive rocket's 14th test flight is scheduled for September 22, when it will attempt to put the upper stage into Earth orbit for the first time. The launch is currently pending regulatory approval, with a 75-minute window opening at 7:15 a.m. CT.
Starship has 26 Starlink satellites to deliver
For decades, humanity has looked up at the Moon and wondered what it would be like to live on it. Think sprawling cities, factories, research centers, and permanent human settlements. Unfortunately, there is one fairly fundamental problem with that vision.
A new study published in Frontiers in Space Technologies argues that even the Moon's potentially enormous reserves of frozen water may be nowhere near enough to support city-sized populations sustainably. Researchers Martin Elvis and Jonathan McDowell estimate that the permanently shadowed regions near the lunar poles could contain roughly one billion tons of water. It sounds like an extraordinary amount until you put a million thirsty humans next to it.