SpaceX Fires 11 Raptor Engines as It Prepares for Orbital Starship Test
SpaceX has seen enormous success with the Falcon 9 and Dragon combo, which are certified to carry both cargo and astronauts into space. Its follow-up will be the Starship, which has conducted a few short suborbital test flights. To leave Earth behind, though, Starship needs the Super Heavy booster. SpaceX has just conducted the longest-yet firing test of the Super Heavy’s Raptor engines, and nothing exploded.
When stacked atop the Super Heavy, Starship is the tallest rocket in the world, and it will also be the most powerful launch vehicle ever designed once it gets off the ground. Before that, SpaceX needs to ensure that the Super Heavy’s bank of 33 Raptor engines works correctly. Previously, the company lit 14 Raptor engines on Super Heavy, but they ran only a few seconds before shutting down. In the most recent test, 11 of the 33 boosters ignited for 12 seconds.
SpaceX didn’t elaborate on the purpose of this test, but it might be related to work on the rocket’s autogenous pressurization system, according to Ars Technica. Rather than use an inert gas like helium to pressurize the fuel tanks, Super Heavy uses gasses generated on the rocket to do the job. CEO Elon Musk said this test would take 20 seconds, though. It’s possible the 12-second firing was to test autogenous pressurization, or it could have been something completely different.
Next test is ~20 sec firing with max oxygen fill to test autogenous pressurization, possibly one more static fire, then orbital launch attempt
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 15, 2022
Musk’s aerospace firm is taking an iterative approach to developing Starship, which he has said will eventually replace the Falcon 9 for all of SpaceX’s operations. At least initially, Starship will be utilized for a smaller number of important launches. NASA has contracted with SpaceX to develop the Starship HLS (Human Landing System) for lunar landings in the Artemis Program. Musk has also said that Starship is necessary to deploy the company’s next-gen Starlink v2 communication satellites.
SpaceX has previously said it intends to conduct an orbital test of Starship this year. However, it has yet to even light all 33 Super Heavy engines at the same time, and Starship doesn’t have enough power to reach orbit on its own. Even when the company has completed testing, it needs to secure a launch license from the US Federal Aviation Administration, and that is still in process. It’s possible Starship will try to head into space this year, but it looks increasingly likely the test will be pushed to early 2023.
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