SpaceX is preparing to relaunch its 37-story Starship as soon as Sunday, pending regulatory approval.
This will be Starship’s fifth launch, and it could be an incredible show: SpaceX plans to hold a 21-story booster on the launch pad shortly after liftoff.
This news is surprising, as last month the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it did not expect to issue a decision on the proposed launch before the end of November. However, on Monday, SpaceX tweeted that flight testing could begin as soon as Sunday.
In a statement to NASASpaceflight, a private aerospace news organization, the FAA said it is reviewing new information submitted by SpaceX about the proposed flight. It did not speak at the November deadline.
Additionally, SpaceX was grounded following the launch of its Crew-9 mission to the International Space Station on September 29, after the second stage missed its deorbit splashdown. Special permission was granted to launch NASA’s Hera mission last Monday.
NASA is also awaiting the launch of its Europa Clipper mission to Jupiter’s moon, which was due to launch Thursday aboard the SpaceX Falcon Heavy. That launch has been postponed due to Hurricane Milton, but could happen as early as Sunday.
Development
This next integrated flight test (IFT5) of Starship saw many changes following the last launch, IFT4, in June.
During IFT4, viewers were treated to an unprecedented view of the Starship re-entering space, with plasma surrounding the ship. Re-installation heat was worse on one flap, which was covered with tin to trap the heat, and had some damage. Despite that, the spacecraft was able to re-enter and “land” successfully in the Indian Ocean.
SpaceX has since upgraded its heat shield to the new generation, along with other layers that it hopes will add better protection.
But the biggest show of IFT5 is this innovation: After the Super Heavy booster separates from the Starship, SpaceX intends to make an effort to return it to the launch site in Boca Chica, Texas, using the so-called “sticks,” which are sticks. can be seen holding the Starship before launch.
The decision to intercept it will be made six minutes and 50 seconds after launch, and the sonic boom is expected to increase, once the booster re-enters the coast. It will be the first time any such attempt has been made using arms, and with such a large booster.
External cameras captured the plasma field generated as SpaceX’s Starship re-entered Earth’s atmosphere during the company’s third mega rocket test flight on Thursday. The company later said the spacecraft was destroyed during re-entry.
“Infrastructure to hold the booster that comes back, rather than land [SpaceX’s] The Falcon is new and unprecedented in the history of aerospace,” said Jordan Bimm, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Chicago and an aerospace historian.
“This will be the time to watch this trial and determine whether IFT4 can be a successful development.”
Bimm says, if this is successful, the next step is probably the launch of the Starship a full cycle since, until now, this launch has been suborbital, which means that it has not gone completely to Earth.
SpaceX competes with the FAA
The dispute between SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and the FAA has continued for several weeks, with Musk strongly criticizing the penalty proposed by the regulator in connection with the launch of SpaceX, and the delay of IFT5, which the company says is ready to launch since August. .
Musk has threatened to sue and has called for the resignation of FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker. The expected sonic boom of the IFT5 is one of the problems the FAA has long cited for its approval, due to wildlife near populated areas.
In a congressional hearing last month, Whitaker said the delay “has to do with SpaceX filing and not disclosing that it’s violating Texas and federal law on other things, and that’s a requirement to get a permit.”
SpaceX has disputed that claim.
If the launch happens on Sunday, it’s possible that another one will come soon, as SpaceX is already testing the next booster and Starship.
Musk hopes that Starship will one day take people to Mars. But, in the short term, it will be used to take astronauts to the surface of the moon on NASA’s Artemis III mission, scheduled for 2026.
Bimm will be keeping a close eye on this next launch.
“The limited success of IFT4 gave the Starship program a boost,” he said.
“I will be watching to see if IFT5 is able to build on this momentum or if there is any backsliding or failure to achieve these new goals.”
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