Elon Musk shared a rare video on X (formerly Twitter), showing a Starship upper stage making a vertical water landing.
Before attempting to catch the ship with the tower hands, like the booster, he wrote,” We must perfect ship reentry at extreme conditions.”
SpaceX’s Starship Super Heavy is preparing for a major test flight on March 4, following a critical approval from the US. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The mission aims to refine reentry techniques and test the booster’s return-to-launch-site manoeuvre. This is a key step in SpaceX’s long-term plans for lunar and Martian exploration.
This test comes after a SpaceX mistake on January 16 when it lost its earlier Starship design in space. The FAA has approved Flight 8 despite the research into that incident after reviewing security measures. SpaceX has since updated the equipment to boost vehicle reliability and performance.
One of the biggest difficulties with this check is the Super Heavy booster’s deliberate getting endeavor. The objective is to use the” chopstick” arms of the launch tower to get the booster, which would be a significant step toward ensuring that the rocket is completely recyclable. The Starship upper stage did attempt a controlled splashdown off the Australian coast in the Indian Ocean.
The car ahead flaps have been modified by SpaceX to reduce heat exposure when the vehicle is reentried to increase durability. These improvements are essential to ensuring the aircraft can manage upcoming missions, such as Musk’s Mars exploration aim and NASA’s Artemis program.
