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SpaceX will attempt to launch its massive Starship rocket on Thursday, in what will be a critical test of Elon Musk’s hopes of colonising Mars.
The 120-metre rocket is the biggest and most powerful spacecraft ever built, capable of producing 7.5 million kilograms of thrust – roughly double that of Nasa’s Space Launch System (SLS).
The fourth major flight test comes less than three months after SpaceX successfully launched a Starship prototype into orbit but failed to return it to Earth. The main objective for today’s test flight is to recover both the Starship rocket and its Super Heavy booster to prove its reusability.
SpaceX has received all the necessary regulatory approval for the launch, and restrictions are already in place for road and marine traffic.
A 120-minute launch window opens at 7am local time (1pm BST). You can watch a live stream of the Starship launch right here.
Starship stacked for flight 4
The two-hour launch window will open in just a couple of hours, with Starship fully stacked and waiting to be fuelled on the launchpad at SpaceX’s Starbase facility.
Here’s what the company has said it hopes to achieve with today’s launch:
The fourth flight test turns our focus from achieving orbit to demonstrating the ability to return and reuse Starship and Super Heavy. The primary objectives will be executing a landing burn and soft splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico with the Super Heavy booster, and achieving a controlled entry of Starship.
To accomplish this, several software and hardware upgrades have been made to increase overall reliability and address lessons learned from Flight 3. The SpaceX team will also implement operational changes, including the jettison of the Super Heavy’s hot-stage following boostback to reduce booster mass for the final phase of flight.
Flight 4 will fly a similar trajectory as the previous flight test, with Starship targeted to splashdown in the Indian Ocean. This flight path does not require a deorbit burn for reentry, maximizing public safety while still providing the opportunity to meet our primary objective of a controlled Starship reentry.
The fourth flight of Starship will aim to bring us closer to the rapidly reusable future on the horizon. We’re continuing to rapidly develop Starship, putting flight hardware in a flight environment to learn as quickly as possible as we build a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars and beyond.
SpaceX
Anthony Cuthbertson6 June 2024 10:34
The world’s biggest rocket is about to get bigger
Measuring 120 metres tall, Starship is the biggest and most powerful rocket ever built – but SpaceX boss Elon Musk says it will soon be even bigger.
Responding to a post to X (formerly Twitter) last month, Mr Musk wrote that Starship “will probably approach ~140m (currently ~120m) over time”.
For comparison, the Great Pyramid of Giza – the largest Egyptian pyramid – stands at 137m. It is not clear whether this additional height will result in more power, with the current version capable of producing 7.5 million kilograms of thrust – roughly double that of the world’s second most powerful rocket, Nasa’s Space Launch System (SLS).
Anthony Cuthbertson6 June 2024 10:29
Fourth major flight test will be critical
Today’s attempt comes just three months after SpaceX last sent a Starship rocket into space, and while it successfully reached orbit, not all went to plan.
Both the Super Heavy booster and the main Starship rocket were destroyed before they could make it back to Earth, making today’s attempt a critical test of SpaceX’s hopes of using the spacecraft for missions to the Moon, Mars and beyond in the coming years. Proving that both parts of its massive rocket are reusable is the main aim for SpaceX today, so we will hope to see them splash down in the Gulf of Mexico and Indian Ocean respectively. And no more explosions.
We’ve got a round-up of SpaceX’s explosive Starship history. You can watch it here:
Anthony Cuthbertson6 June 2024 09:21
Hello and welcome...
to The Independent’s live coverage of today’s Starship launch attempt. The rocket is stacked, the roads are cleared, and approval has been granted by the necessary authorities for lift off to go ahead.
We’ll be bringing you all the latest updates, analysis and even a live stream of the launch itself as soon as it’s ready.
T-Minus 4 hours.
Anthony Cuthbertson6 June 2024 09:07
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