Starship lifts off on its fourth test flight. (SpaceX image) ( )
SpaceX is looking at later this week for its next flight test of Starship from its South Texas launch site.
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The 13th test looks to test modifications to hardware and software from previous flights, while launching Starlink satellites for the first time.
SpaceX to launch 13th Starship flight test
What we know:
SpaceX’s latest test flight is currently scheduled for Thursday with the 90-minute launch window opening at 5:45 p.m.
The latest test flight will test the company’s Super Heavy booster with the objective of a successful launch, ascent, stage separation, boostback burn and landing burn. SpaceX said the booster’s hardware has been modified to improve relight reliability.
For Starship, the company hopes to launch 20 Starlink satellites and have a successful relight of an engine while in space with a controlled entry, descent and splashdown in the Indian Ocean. The company is also doing some testing of Starship’s heat shields.
What went wrong during test flight 12?
SpaceX had issues with both the Super Heavy booster and Starship during its last test flight.
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During the previous test flight, SpaceX said differences in engine startup on the ship caused the booster’s directional flip to be off by 90 degrees. Some of the booster’s engines also failed to reignite, causing its boostback burn to end early.
The Federal Aviation Administration cited “heat effects on propulsion system components during the ascent and erroneous engine alarm system settings” as causes for the booster’s failure. SpaceX said those issues have been addressed for the upcoming test.
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Starship also experienced issues during the test flight, when one of it lost one of its engines. Starship was still able to hit its planned trajectory.
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