Hi everybody, and welcome back to the Elon Musk podcast.
Today we're going to be talking about the SpaceX Starship I FT-2
launch that'll be happening from Boca Chica Starbase, Texas.
We'll discuss the meticulous preparations of SpaceX has
undertaken, the implications of the FA A's ongoing review
following Starship's first Test flight, and what we can expect
from this highly anticipated second launch attempt.
But before we jump into the heart of the matter, a quick
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Now this Tuesday was a crucial day for SpaceX as a Starship
rocket was stacked atop its super heavy booster in South
Texas, marking the beginning of the final preparations for its
second launch. Now, this occasion led to SpaceX
founder Elon Musk to post on X or Twitter that Starship is
ready to launch, awaiting FAA license approval and the mention
of the FAA. The Federal Aviation
Administration is noteworthy. The agency is still engaged in
reviewing documents and data from Spacex's first attempt to
launch Starship in April of 2023.
That initial flight concluded about 90 seconds after liftoff
due to engine difficulties and other problems with the booster.
Now, as part of their ongoing evaluation, the FEA is looking
into several aspects of this incident, such as the
environmental impact at the launch site and the delayed
activation of the Rockets flight termination system.
And in response to these setbacks, SpaceX generated a
quote mishap investigation report and submitted it to the
FAA. The FAA in turn will highlight
the corrective measures SpaceX must implement prior to its
second test flight. The objective is to ensure the
safety of not only property but also humans and wildlife in the
vicinity of the South Texas launch site, which is close to
both wetlands and the Gulf of Mexico.
Now when probed for an update on this regulatory scrutiny and FAA
spokesperson suggested that additional information could be
forthcoming. In fact, on Wednesday at 6:00 PM
Eastern, the FAA issued a statement indicating the SpaceX
Starship mishap investigation remains open.
We clarified that they won't authorize another Starship
launch until SpaceX enacts the identified corrective actions
and complies with all license modification prerequisites.
Now, beyond the regulatory stuff, it's worth noting the
SpaceX has been incredibly busy with preparations at the
Starbase launch site. They've worked diligently to
upgrade the ground systems in the rocket itself.
For the second launch attempt. In the first flight, the absence
of a sound suppression system caused significant structural
damage, notably sending fragments of concrete from the
launchpad, scattering across the vicinity of the Starbase
location. And in order to mitigate this
issue, SpaceX has constructed and tested a new water deluge
and flame deflector system located under the Starship
launch mount. Now, the SpaceX engineering team
has also been occupied with enhancing the interstage area
between the first stage rocket and the upper stage Starship
vehicle, now referred to as a hot staging ring, and the aim is
to enable the Starship upper stage engines to ignite even
before the Super heavy first stage finishes its burn.
Although this is an intricate operation, a successful
execution could significantly boost the mass to orbit
performance of this launch vehicle.
And in preparation for the upcoming test flight, SpaceX has
carried out two hot fire tests of the Booster 9 rocket and also
ran tests on the Starship upper stage Ship 25.
And both sets of hardware have mainly passed these trials and
the next test flight, unlike commercial missions, will not
carry any payloads or people. And the objective is to test the
performance of the 33 Raptor rocket engines in the booster
along with stage separation and the ignition of Starship 6
engines. And should the flight proceed as
planned, Starship will complete almost 3/4 of an orbit around
Earth before making a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean north of
Hawaiian Island of Kauai. Now while the exact flight path
might still be under wraps pending FAA approval and other
regulatory checks, the anticipated trajectory does give
us plenty to talk about. Starship, once launched, aims to
achieve a series of milestones that not only demonstrate the
feasibility of the technology, but also provide invaluable data
for future, more complex missions.
The first part of the flight involves the ignition of Super
heavy 33 Raptor rocket engines. These engines are expected to
generate a massive amount of thrust, propelling the vehicle
through Earth's atmosphere. It's crucial for all these
engines to operate in synchronization, not just for
liftoff but also as the vehicle ascends.
The Super Heavy booster is the real workhorse here, designed to
lift the entire rocket assembly until it reaches a designated
altitude where stage separation occurs.
Now upon reaching this altitude, a highly crucial part of the
mission takes place. The stage separation is where
the Super Heavy detaches from the Starship upper stage and at
this point the upper stage, which has its own set of 6
Raptor engines, ignites to continue the journey into space.
Now this stage aims to carry Starship almost 3/4 of an orbit
around Earth is a complex dance, the physics and engineering
requiring precise timing and flawless execution from both
hardware and software systems on board.
And one of the most innovative features expected to be tested
is the hot staging ring, designed to facilitate the
seamless transition between the Super heavy booster and the
Starship upper stage. And the hot staging ring would
theoretically enable the upper stage engines to ignite even
before super heavy has completed its burn and separated.
This complicated maneuver of successfully executed would
revolutionize the mass to orbit performance metrics, allowing
heavier payloads to be carried to space with greater
efficiency. And after completing nearly 75%
of US orbit, the plan is for Starship to descend into the
Pacific Ocean north of the Hawaiian island of Kauai.
This segment of the mission is equally critical because it
involves reentry into the atmosphere which subjects the
spacecraft to extreme temperatures and stresses.
A Starships heat shield and other protective measures will
be put to the test here, essentially proving whether the
vehicle is capable of enduring the harsh conditions it would
face in an actual mission beyond Earth to orbit.
Now let's talk about a Super Heavy booster.
After separation, the design philosophy behind Super Heavy
focuses on reusability. Post separation, Super Heavy
will execute a controlled descent burn back to Earth in
The booster aims to land vertically as a designated
platform, a maneuver that SpaceX has perfected with its Falcon 9
rockets. And achieving this with a Super
Heavy booster would be another monumental milestone considering
its enormous size and complexity.
The booster is about 250 feet tall now.
By studying each segment of the flight path in extreme detail,
SpaceX aims to gather a treasure trove of data that would inform
future missions, be a lunar landings, Marcus Expeditions, or
even more ambitious yet to be announced adventures into the
cosmos. And every piece of information,
from engine performance and stage separation to reentry
dynamics and splashdown is a puzzle piece in the grand scheme
of the Starship. Thank you for joining us today
on this episode of the Elon Musk podcast.
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