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Hi everybody, welcome back to 
the show. 

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Today we're going to do our 
final episode of Starship Week 

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for the Starship IFT 2 launch. 
I'm your host, Will Walden and 

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this rocket, the Starship rocket
experienced A partial success in

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a dramatic failure during its 
latest test flight. 

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The spacecraft, which is 
designed for deep space 

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missions, managed to launch and 
separate from its Super Heavy 

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booster, but ultimately ended in
an explosion. 

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In the first phase of the 
flight, the Super Heavy booster 

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successfully ignited all 33 
Raptor engines, feat that has 

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been challenging even in ground 
tests. 

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However, after the Starship 
spacecraft separated and 

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continued its ascent, the 
booster unexpectedly exploded. 

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The Starship reached an 
impressive altitude near the 

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edge of space before 
encountering issues that led to 

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the loss of signal and the 
activation of its self destruct 

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mechanism. 
Now, this incident is a reminder

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of the complexities of this 
gigantic rocket, especially with

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new in these untested tech. 
Now, the FAA has already 

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announced an investigation into 
this mishap. 

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Now let's explore this event a 
little bit more. 

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Now let's talk about the flight.
The recent SpaceX Starship 

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launch marked another huge step 
in the company's pursuit of 

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space exploration. 
The launch saw the Starship 

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spacecraft lift off with a super
heavy booster, achieving a 

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successful separation. 
Unfortunately, the booster 

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exploded post separation, a set 
back that overshadowed the 

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partial success of this whole 
flight. 

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But it's the complete success in
my mind. 

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SpaceX aimed to push the 
spacecraft to near orbital 

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velocities. 
This is a huge milestone for 

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them, and it's for the future of
their deep space missions. 

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And despite reaching a 
significant altitude, the 

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spacecraft ultimately lost 
contract and triggered its self 

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destruct mechanism, a safety 
measure to prevent it from 

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veering off course and hurting 
people and property. 

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Now John Insprucker, we call him
Daddy over here with the the 

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SpaceX fan club over here who's 
an aerospace engineer, explained

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the late activation of the 
flight termination system. 

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He works at SpaceX, which 
occurred over the Gulf of Mexico

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and this incident highlights the
inherent risks in testing 

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advanced rocket technology. 
SpaceX statement emphasized the 

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learning approach, underscoring 
that each test, regardless of 

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its outcome, contributes to 
improving Starships reliability.

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And the FAA's involvement with a
statement confirming no injuries

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or damage to public property 
sets the stage for a little bit 

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of more of a thorough 
investigation into this and 

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they'll just be uncovering the 
root cause of this incident. 

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But the FAA swift response to 
Space XS Starship test flight 

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It's an important aspect of the 
ongoing development of the 

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Starship. 
Their statement confirmed the 

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occurrence of a mishap, which 
resulted in the loss of the 

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Starship vehicle, but thankfully
reported no injuries or damage 

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to public property. 
The agency's role is crucial in 

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ensuring that such ambitious 
aerospace endeavors adhere to 

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safety standards and 
regulations. 

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They have initiated A mishap 
investigation to determine the 

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specific causes of Starship's 
failure, and I'm assuming that 

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once they figure out what the 
causes were, they will make sure

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that SpaceX addresses those 
concerns for the IFT 3 launch, 

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which will be coming up probably
in the first quarter of next 

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year. 
The FAA's investigation is 

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standard procedure following 
such events, aiming to provide 

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insights that can prevent future
incidents. 

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The decision on whether the 
Starship Super Heavy vehicle can

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return to flight will depend on 
the findings of this 

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investigation and their 
assessment of Spacex's measures 

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to ensure public safety. 
And the duration of the 

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investigation is uncertain. 
As previous inquiries had taken 

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several months, this one might 
be a little bit less time, and 

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this process demonstrates the 
FAA's commitment to overseeing 

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the safety of aerospace 
developments. 

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Now we have to talk about the 
hot staging. 

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This is a new part of the 
Starship IFT 2. 

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SpaceX Starship test flight 
brought attention to the complex

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process of what they call hot 
staging. 

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This is the technique used 
during the Rockets launch. 

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This method of first for SpaceX 
on Saturday is part of the stage

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separation process. 
Unlike the pneumatic pushers 

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used in the Falcon 9 rocket, 
Starship separation involved 

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igniting its engines to detach 
from the Super heavy booster. 

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So the top part ignites the 
engines while it's still 

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attached to the bottom part. 
And this aggressive separation 

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approach, referred to as 
separation by blunt force 

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trauma, was identified as the 
riskiest part of the flight by 

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Elon Musk. 
An explosion of a super heavy 

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booster post hot staging was an 
unexpected outcome, indicating 

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the challenges of this new 
technique. 

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Although SpaceX was prepared for
the possibility of the booster 

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not surviving, they actually 
didn't expect it to survive. 

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They expected to splash down in 
the Gulf of Mexico and 

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disintegrate, and the actual 
event provided valuable data for

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future improvements of hot 
staging and the booster flip 

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back maneuver. 
Now the goal was to reignite the

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Super heavy engines for a 
controlled landing, a plan that 

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went kind of awry. 
Kate Tai, senior manager at 

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SpaceX, acknowledged the dynamic
nature of hot staging and its 

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potential risks, and this 
incident underscores. 

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After the tumultuous hot 
staging, the Starship spacecraft

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continued its ascent, though 
showcasing that SpaceX is on the

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ball. 
With their engineering 

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capabilities, Mission Control 
erupted into cheers. 

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The Starship near the end of its
engine burn, seemingly on course

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for Earth's orbit. 
However, the situation took a 

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turn when SpaceX lost video 
signal with the spacecraft, 

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followed by the loss of data. 
And usually when you lose data 

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from a spacecraft, something 
pretty bad happened. 

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Now this indicated the Starship 
was not performing as planned, 

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leading to the activation of its
Flight Termination System in the

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spacecraft journey, which was 
intended to complete nearly a 

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full orbit around Earth. 
The splashdown near Hawaii was 

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cut a little bit short, and this
abrupt end to the test flight 

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highlights the unpredictable 
nature of starships and 

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especially with these new 
technologies. 

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And since this is only the 2nd 
test flight, it's going to get 

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better every single time. 
The early termination of the 

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flight, while disappointing, is 
a part of the iterative process 

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of testing and learning and 
rocket development. 

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The recent Starship incident 
bears a resemblance to the first

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launch attempt in April, sort 
of, but a super heavy booster 

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experienced engine failures 
leading to an out of control 

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spiral and activation of the 
self destruct feature. 

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These repeated mishaps 
demonstrates the challenges that

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SpaceX faces in developing such 
a complex and massive rocket 

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system. 
However, the company's approach 

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to rocket development is notably
different from traditional 

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methods. 
SpaceX embraces learning 

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opportunities presented by these
gigantic fireballs in the sky, 

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and they're kind of mishaps, and
they use them to enhance their 

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designs and strategies going 
forward. 

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The rebuilding and upgrading of 
the launch site in the Starship 

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systems following the April 
mishap, their philosophy of 

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learning through flying and 
testing, as opposed to relying 

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solely on ground simulations and
models, has been a key aspect of

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the rapid development cycle. 
This approach, while sometimes 

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leading to dynamic failures, is 
instrumental in Spacex's pursuit

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of breakthroughs in space 
technology. 

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I want to say thank you so much 
for listening to the show today.

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Today's discussion highlighted 
the complexities and the 

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challenges in Spacex's journey 
to advanced space exploration 

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technology. 
The recent Starship test flight,

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while not fully successful, 
provided valuable insights for 

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Spacex's ongoing development, 
and as investigations continue, 

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we look forward to understanding
more about this important event 

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in space travel. 
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around 10 minutes or under, 
helping you quickly get caught 

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up with all the latest of space 
travel, SpaceX, and Elon Musk. 

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So please take care of 
yourselves and each other and 

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I'll see you tomorrow.