SpaceX and NASA applauded the test flight of the Starship that made it to space on its third attempt. Major milestones were achieved. It was solid progress for the company expected to take American astronauts back to the Moon. “It was an incredibly successful flight,” SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell said at the Satellite Conference in Washington DC.
However, neither the booster nor the Starship returned to Earth in the way SpaceX expected. Both vehicles broke up in an uncontrolled manner.
This is a big deal because the Starship is the spacecraft NASA is paying to land two astronauts on the Moon at the end of 2026. A second lunar landing is to follow. You have money in this effort. Taxpayers will spend a total of $3 billion for the two missions.
SpaceX has a lot to do and prove in the next two and a half years. Both the company and the space agency have to be feeling a bit of pressure but they suggest all is moving forward.
SpaceX works differently than NASA has for decades. NASA likes to design, simulate, and test before launching a new product. SpaceX operates quicker by flying, failing, and fixing. Elon Musk’s motto is, “fail fast.” Officially, SpaceX calls its efforts a, “rapid iterative development approach.”
If you missed the third test flight on the morning of March 14, it was a spectacular launch. The biggest rocket/spaceship ever built lifted off, separated, and reached orbital trajectory. All of those elements are important milestones for this new spacecraft.
The Super Heavy booster, the first stage of the rocket, lifted the Starship off the pad and separated as expected. The booster did make a couple of planned maneuvers and an engine burn to slow it down. When it was set to get into landing “attitude” its engines fired up. But, the booster broke up at about 1,500 feet above the Gulf of Mexico. This is planned to be a reusable booster and that wasn’t what SpaceX expected.
Last few moments of the Super Heavy booster returning to Earth before it broke up and the signal was lost. (Credit: SpaceX)
As for the Starship, its engines did fire up to get it to the orbit altitude expected. As the vehicle was “coasting,” some planned tests were conducted. A lot went wrong after that. There was a planned engine relight. It didn’t happen because the Starship was rolling on its axis. That’s how it reentered the atmosphere.
So much heat is generated by slamming onto the Earth’s protective atmosphere that a rolling Starship would not have provided perfect data on the performance of its heat shields. It was during that reentry that communication of Starship ended and the spacecraft likely broke apart as it fell in the Indian Ocean, at 49 minutes into the flight.
SpaceX wants to try again soon. Early May is possible for a fourth test flight. Even the FAA sees no major issues holding up another test. SpaceNews reported that FAA associate administrator for commercial space transportation Kevin Coleman told a conference, “It ended in what we call a mishap, but at the end of the day we deem it a successful launch attempt,” because there were no injuries or property damage.
Among some of the milestones achieved, SpaceX was able to open and close a cargo door. The company says it did learn a lot about the heat of reentry, and it initiated, “a propellant transfer demonstration.”
That last item is critical. This big spacecraft uses its fuel to get to space. To get to the Moon, land, and take off again, it needs to be refueled. That’s never been done at this scale in space before. What SpaceX did during the test flight was move liquid oxygen from one tank to another. Ultimately, it will need to move propellant from one vehicle to another.
Animation suggesting propellant transfer is space between two Starhsips. (Credit: SpaceX)
SpaceX has said Starship will need at least 10 other Starship tankers to meet up in orbit around the Earth and transfer propellant to the moonbound spacecraft. If SpaceX can make successful fuel transfers it must also land on the Moon without a crew before the Artemis III mission will return Americans to the Moon.
Two months before the third test flight NASA updated reporters on the Artemis program. Associate administrator Jim Free noted that challenges remain. “We must be realistic… We are looking at our Starship progress. The need for propellant transfer. The need for numerous landings.”
SpaceX President Gwynee Shotwell talks about the third test flight of the Starship at the 2024 Satellite Conference. (Credit: Via Satellite Magazine)
NASA was full of praise for the accomplishments of this latest test flight. “With each flight test, SpaceX attempts increasingly ambitious objectives for Starship,” NASA said in a release. But half of that release is dedicated to the question of transferring super-cooled propellant. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk says he expects a vehicle to vehicle transfer to happen next year.
There is a lot to be done including “sticking the landing” of both parts of this massive rocket system. SpaceX’s Shotwell says the next test flight won’t carry satellites as cargo. Instead, she says, “I think we are going to focus on getting reentry right and making sure we can land these things where we want to land them, successfully.”
Musk explained to employees last week that during the next test the company will try to “land the booster on a virtual tower” in the ocean. That means an upright booster coming down in a controlled manner in a spot picked by the company. If that works Musk predicted the fifth test would mean bringing the booster back to the launch site and catching it with gigantic arms.
The CEO also highlighted that other big obstacle, dealing with the extreme heat of reentry. He says during the next flight he hopes Starship is able to, “get through the high heating regime.”
Elon Musk encouraging workers at the Boca Chica, Texas Starbase where his Starship is currently built. (Credit: SpaceX)
Musk declared, “dramatic progress on every level for Starship.” He needs a lot more.
That next test flight could be just weeks away. There is a lot to do in the two and a half years when NASA expects astronauts to be walking on the Moon again.
Nope. Not the Super Heavy booster. SpaceX used what it called a Hopper to test landing of a larger vehicle. It took a couple tries, but the company made it work. That success led to the booster and the Starship plans to land at Starbase. This company likes to move fast and it has worked in the past. There is still a lot to do to put astronauts back on the Moon.
Totally enjoyed this update. Wish it was someone other than EM! Nevertheless, this is great stuff. I thought they had the booster rocket landing handled? Didn't you do a piece that featured that? Great stuff!