SpaceX receives FAA blessing for another Starship test
- Reference: 1741010673
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2025/03/03/spacex_faa_starship/
- Source link:
The FAA has issued a [1]license modification authorizing the test flight, which is scheduled to launch on March 3 from 2330 UTC. One of the license modifications references orbital flight, suggesting that SpaceX is getting ready to move on from sub-orbital launches.
The latest launch comes a week after Flight 7, which began so promisingly (the Super Heavy Booster was caught by arms on the launch tower) and ended so badly (the second stage exploded). Debris showered down over the Turks and Caicos Islands.
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SpaceX [3]reckoned the premature end to the previous test was down to "harmonic response" and has tweaked the hardware and thrust targets accordingly. It also undertook an extended static fire of Flight 8's Starship to ensure things wouldn't come to pieces in the same way again.
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This is still a test, and SpaceX has [6]said : "Developmental testing by definition is unpredictable."
Although a safety review has been completed, the FAA noted that the investigation into the Starship Flight 7 on January 16 "remains open."
[7]
Flight 8 will fly on the same suborbital trajectory as its predecessor, which means splashing down in the ocean for Starship and hopefully another catch of the Super Heavy Booster by arms on the launch tower.
[8]FAA confirms it's testing Starlink, maybe for tasks Elon says Verizon is doing badly
[9]SpaceX says bad vibes most likely cause of Starship 7 flop
[10]SpaceX has an explanation for the Falcon 9 bits that hit Poland
[11]Elon Musk calls for International Space Station to be deorbited by 2027
SpaceX boss Elon Musk [12]explained why the company continues to send Starship into the sea at the end of the mission: "We need to perfect ship reentry at extreme temperatures before attempting to catch the ship with the tower arms, like the booster."
SpaceX is trying several modifications to protect Starship during reentry, including active cooling for the tiles. The spacecraft's reentry profile has also been designed to deliberately stress the structural limits of the upper stage's rear flaps while at maximum entry dynamic pressure.
The company also plans to relight a single Raptor engine while the vehicle is in space – essential before moving to orbital operations – and deploy four Starlink simulators. Similar in size to next-generation Starlink satellites, the simulators will be on the same suborbital trajectory as Starship.
Should all go well with Flight 8, an orbital flight will likely soon follow, and possibly - before long - a launch tower catch instead of an ocean splashdown. ®
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[1] https://drs.faa.gov/browse/excelExternalWindow/DRSDOCID173891218620231102140506.0001
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2Z8XgNIV9VxBt4bCF0GrAEwAAAII&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://www.theregister.com/2025/02/26/spacex_harmonic_response_starship/
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Z8XgNIV9VxBt4bCF0GrAEwAAAII&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Z8XgNIV9VxBt4bCF0GrAEwAAAII&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://www.spacex.com/launches/mission/?missionId=starship-flight-8
[7] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Z8XgNIV9VxBt4bCF0GrAEwAAAII&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2025/02/27/faa_starlink_test/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2025/02/26/spacex_harmonic_response_starship/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2025/02/24/spacex_falcon_9_debris/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2025/02/21/elon_musk_iss_mogensen_insult/
[12] https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1896239972195438598
[13] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Now now, the sooner this testing is done the sooner we can pack him and his orange pet off to Mars.
It doesn't even need to be to Mars, the upper atmosphere is good enough for me. I believe that can already be done.
And this surprises you how?
"horse’s head"
Even Starship can't get to that nebula yet!
"Nice Federal Aviation Administration you've got here, it would be a shame if the place was trashed by DOGE."
What are the chances of Starship or booster falling on Mar-a-lago, when a certain avid golfer is in residence?
And if it did happen, would it be an accident?
I thought the FAA was being a little nit-picky on the last couple of launches however the end of the last launch attempt did give me pause. A proper balance is needed but I don't think the current administration has the slightest idea of what balance means.
Nit picky?
Safety rules, regulations and laws are written in blood and deaths.
Surely you would not want to add yours and your loved ones to that list?
That's not what they were being nit-picky about. It was mostly environmental (still important, especially in that area), and making sure that problems with previous launches, neither of which posed any danger to life or limb were properly addressed.
The delay in destroying the FAA does not depend on whether or not they issue SpaceX a license. SpaceX have already launched three times without a valid license. They got one slapped wrist for SN8 and a fine that will never be collected for the two Falcon launches. Next time I doubt there will be anyone to left issue a fine.
Musk has adopted Curtis Yarvin's plan for the future. There will be no more government, only corporations with unlimited power. Any functions of government that matter to corporations will be handled by corporations directly. Corporations currently benefit from government air traffic control. The last of the FAA will be de-funded when corporations say they can do business perfectly well without them.
The IFT8 license might possibly be legit because it makes no difference to Musk one way or the other. Having it ready at this time may well have caused delays to licenses for ULA, RocketLab, Stoke, Firefly, etc because of where limited resources are deployed.
The FAA are hardly likely to turn him down now are they? The writing is on the wall, and the writing says “The Criminals are in charge. Cross us and we’ll leave a horse’s head in your bed”