{"id":11074,"date":"2023-02-10T00:36:38","date_gmt":"2023-02-09T16:36:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/spacex-test-fires-31-engines-on-starships-gigantic-super-heavy-booster\/"},"modified":"2023-02-10T00:36:38","modified_gmt":"2023-02-09T16:36:38","slug":"spacex-test-fires-31-engines-on-starships-gigantic-super-heavy-booster","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/spacex-test-fires-31-engines-on-starships-gigantic-super-heavy-booster\/","title":{"rendered":"SpaceX test-fires 31 engines on Starship\u2019s gigantic Super Heavy booster"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>EDITOR\u2019S NOTE:&nbsp;<\/strong>Updated Feb. 10 with details.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_60737\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-60737\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-60737\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230210superheavy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230210superheavy.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230210superheavy-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230210superheavy-678x381.jpg 678w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230210superheavy-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-60737\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Super Heavy booster fired 31 of its engines at 3:14 p.m. CST (4:14 p.m. EST; 2114 GMT) Thursday. Credit: SpaceX<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In a significant milestone preparing for liftoff of the world\u2019s most powerful rocket, SpaceX test-fired 31 of the booster\u2019s 33 methane-fueled engines Thursday in South Texas as the company eyes a launch attempt as soon as March.<\/p>\n<p>The engines ignited at 3:14 p.m. CST (4:14 p.m. EST; 2114 GMT) Thursday at SpaceX\u2019s Starbase facility near Brownsville, Texas. A video feed from SpaceX showed the engines fired for approximately six to seven seconds. SpaceX confirmed the test-firing achieved its full planned duration, and the booster remained firmly on its launch mount on the Texas Gulf Coast.<\/p>\n<p>Elon Musk, SpaceX\u2019s founder and CEO, tweeted minutes later that engineers turned off one of the booster\u2019s 33 engines just before ignition, and another engine \u201cstopped itself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo 31 engines fired overall,\u201d Musk tweeted. \u201cBut still enough engines to reach orbit!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Starship upper stage, which was not on the Super Heavy booster for Thursday\u2019s test, could still achieve orbit if multiple engines failed on the first stage.&nbsp;The test-firing Thursday was a critical step on the path to launch of the nearly 400-foot-tall (120-meter) Starship rocket.<\/p>\n<p>It was not clear immediately after the test Thursday whether SpaceX would try again to ignite all 33 engines on the Super Heavy booster in a future test-firing, before attempting to launch the rocket into orbit.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/28lw-s32RSQ\" width=\"678\" height=\"381\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>SpaceX loaded methane fuel and liquid oxygen into the Super Heavy\u2019s tanks during the countdown leading up to the test-firing. SpaceX gave the command to light the Raptor engines mounted in a circular configuration on the bottom of the booster.<\/p>\n<p>The 31 engines that fired together Thursday broke a record for the most rocket engines ever ignited on a single rocket, exceeding the 30-engine Soviet N1 moon rocket that flew on four failed missions from 1969 through 1972.<\/p>\n<p>SpaceX said Friday the 31 engines fired at about half of their full power level, generating about 7.9 million pounds of thrust. With all 33 engines firing at full throttle, the Super Heavy booster will produce more than 16 million pounds of thrust during launch.<\/p>\n<p>Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceX\u2019s president and chief operating officer, said Wednesday the company would attempt the full-up static fire test Thursday, calling it a \u201cbig day for SpaceX\u201d in remarks at the&nbsp;Federal Aviation Administration Commercial Space Transportation Conference in Washington.<\/p>\n<p>According to Space News,&nbsp;Shotwell said the full static fire was \u201creally the final ground test that we can do before we light \u2018em up and go.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>SpaceX could be in a position to attempt the first Starship orbital test flight in March, assuming a good outcome of the test-firing Thursday, Shotwell said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat first flight test is going to be really exciting. It\u2019s going to happen in the next month or so,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe will go for a test flight and we will learn from the test flight and we will do more test flights,\u201d Shotwell said. \u201cThe real goal is to not blow up the launch pad. That is success.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>SpaceX fired 14 of the Super Heavy booster\u2019s engines on the launch pad in November. Teams rolled the Super Heavy booster \u2014 numbered Booster 7 in SpaceX\u2019s nomenclature \u2014 back to the company\u2019s nearby production facility for repairs and upgrades before returning it to the pad.&nbsp;Ground crews fully stacked the Super Heavy and Starship vehicle on the Starbase launch pad for a wet dress rehearsal, or fueling test, last month.<\/p>\n<p>The Starship vehicle \u2014 essentially part upper stage and part in-space transporter \u2014 will not be attached to the top of the Super Heavy booster for the 33-engine ground test this week. The Starship itself has six Raptor engines to power itself into orbit after separating from the Super Heavy booster a few minutes after liftoff.<\/p>\n<p>The booster alone stands 226 feet, or 69 meters, tall, about the same height as SpaceX\u2019s fully assembled Falcon 9 rocket.<\/p>\n<p>SpaceX\u2019s huge privately-funded rocket, made of shiny stainless steel, will be the most powerful ever to fly. The thrust from the 33 main engines on the first stage will double the power output of NASA\u2019s Saturn 5 moon rocket and the Space Launch System, which took the title of most powerful rocket currently flying when it launched on the Artemis 1 lunar test flight in November.<\/p>\n<p>And both stages of the Starship launch vehicle are designed to be fully reusable, a step forward from SpaceX\u2019s partially reusable Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets, which require brand new upper stages on each flight. SpaceX is targeting 100 launches of its Falcon rocket family this year, after logging a record 61 launches last year.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_60729\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-60729\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-60729\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230209superheavyengines.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230209superheavyengines.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230209superheavyengines-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230209superheavyengines-678x452.jpg 678w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230209superheavyengines-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-60729\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Super Heavy booster for SpaceX\u2019s new Starship mega-rocket is powered by 33 methane-fueled Raptor engines. Credit: SpaceX<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>SpaceX\u2019s concept for recovering the Super Heavy booster involves catching it with articulating \u201cchopstick\u201d arms on the launch tower. The Starship will also use its engines to return through the atmosphere and land back on Earth, or reach the surfaces of other planetary bodies like the moon or Mars. The first Starship orbital test flight, however, will not include any recovery and reuse attempts.<\/p>\n<p class=\"animate\">\u201cSpaceX\u2019s Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket \u2013 collectively referred to as Starship \u2013 represent a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the moon, Mars and beyond,\u201d SpaceX says on its website. \u201cStarship will be the world\u2019s most powerful launch vehicle ever developed, with the ability to carry up to 150 metric tonnes to Earth orbit reusable, and up to 250 metric tonnes expendable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Starship\u2019s first orbital test flight, though audacious in scale, will aim to prove out the rocket\u2019s basic launch and re-entry capabilities without fully testing out the complicated landing and recovery systems, according to a SpaceX filing with the Federal Communications Commission last year.<\/p>\n<p>On the first orbital mission, SpaceX plans for the Starship to re-enter the atmosphere after one trip around Earth, heading for a controlled landing at sea in the Pacific Ocean near Hawaii. The Super Heavy booster will splash down in the Gulf of Mexico.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSuccess is far from certain, but excitement is guaranteed,\u201d Musk tweeted earlier this week, referring to the upcoming orbital test flight.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_60721\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-60721\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-60721\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230209starshipstacked.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"899\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230209starshipstacked.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230209starshipstacked-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230209starshipstacked-678x509.jpg 678w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230209starshipstacked-768x575.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230209starshipstacked-326x245.jpg 326w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/20230209starshipstacked-80x60.jpg 80w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-60721\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">A full-stacked Super Heavy and Starship launch vehicle on SpaceX\u2019s launch pad in Texas. The static fire test will occur without the Starship vehicle on top of the booster. Credit: SpaceX<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The FAA announced last year that it will require SpaceX to&nbsp;take more than 75 actions to reduce the environmental effects of flying its 40-story-tall Starship rocket from South Texas. But not all of the mitigation steps are required before the FAA issues a commercial launch license to SpaceX for the first Starship orbital test flight.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve been working all the mitigations,\u201d Shotwell said Wednesday. \u201cI think we\u2019ll be ready to fly right at the timeframe that we get the license.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>SpaceX wants to use the Starship vehicle to launch the company\u2019s Starlink internet satellites, flying heavier, next-generation versions of the broadband relay stations than the spacecraft now being launched by the smaller Falcon 9 rocket. An animation released from SpaceX showed the company\u2019s concept for deploying Starlink satellites from a Starship vehicle in orbit, using a mechanism that works like a giant Pez dispenser.<\/p>\n<p>SpaceX has also won a $2.9 billion contract with NASA to develop the Starship into a human-rated lander for the agency\u2019s Artemis moon missions. A moon derivative of the Starship, assisted by Starship refueling tankers, will be utilized for a lunar landing with astronauts, an event NASA says could happen no earlier than 2025.<\/p>\n<p>SpaceX also has a deal with Japanese billionaire ,Yusaku Maezawa to send a&nbsp;team of&nbsp;private citizens&nbsp;around the moon on a Starship flight. U.S. billionaire Jared Isaacman also plans to fly around the moon on a Starship vehicle as part of his privately-funded Polaris Program, which will begin this year with a flight and and the first commercial spacewalk on a Dragon capsule in Earth orbit.<\/p>\n<p>Flights of the Starship beyond low Earth orbit will require the still-untested in-orbit refueling capability SpaceX is developing for the new-generation rocket.<\/p>\n<p>Musk has said SpaceX intends to use the Starbase facility in Texas as a test site for the Starship program. The company is building a second Starship launch pad at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, with plans to construct more launch sites in the future, eventually building up to a capability to launch multiple Starship flights per day. With rapid reuse, SpaceX aims to reduce costs and give customers unprecedented access to space.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have Starship be as much like aircraft operations as we can possibly can get it,\u201d Shotwell said, according to Space News. \u201cWe want to talk about dozens of launches per day, if not hundreds of launches a day.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><b><i>Email the author.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Follow Stephen Clark on Twitter: @StephenClark1.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>EDITOR\u2019S NOTE:&nbsp;Updated Feb. 10 with details. The Super Heavy booster fired 31 of its engines at 3:14 p.m. CST (4:14 p.m. EST; 2114 GMT) Thursday. Credit: SpaceX In a significant milestone preparing for liftoff of the world\u2019s most powerful rocket, SpaceX test-fired 31 of the booster\u2019s 33 methane-fueled engines Thursday in South Texas as the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[1648,1649,291,25,597,1650,316,739],"class_list":["post-11074","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-boca-chica","tag-booster-7","tag-commercial-space","tag-launch","tag-raptor","tag-ship-24","tag-spacex","tag-starbase"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11074"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11074"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11074\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11074"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11074"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11074"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}