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SpaceX is testing Starship today. In addition to recovering the super-heavy propeller, it will also attempt to capture the spacecraft’s upper stage with the launch tower robotic arm for the first time, marking an important step toward fully reusing the rocket.
American billionairemusk A subsidiary of Space Exploration Technology Corporation (spacex ) will today test the world’s largest and most powerfulrocket “Starship” is the latest test flight, and it plans to use the launch tower robotic arm to “capture” and recover the spacecraft’s upper stage for the first time after Starship has been in orbit for a day.
If the Starship spacecraft’s upper stage can be successfully captured, it would mark a significant milestone in the space industry’s decades-long quest for fully reusable space vehicles, Agence France-Presse reported. This type of vehicle could significantly reduce mission costs and make it possible to make repeated trips to space.
SpaceX said: “If successful, this will be the first time a complete orbital launch system has been recovered, and it will also be a key moment in making Starship a reliable and quickly reusable rocket.”
Starship will conduct its 15th test flight today. SpaceX aims to recover the two-section cabin of this 124-meter-long giant launch vehicle.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX has successfully fired Starship’s “Super Heavy” thruster three times before. Immediately after liftoff the rocket landed vertically back at the launch site, and was caught by the launch tower’s robotic arm.
SpaceX will now try to capture the spacecraft in the same manner that recovered Starship’s upper stage. Some versions of this spacecraft are used to launch Internet satellites and data centers into orbit, while other versions are used to carry humans to the Moon and Mars.
Clayton Swope, an aerospace expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said fully reusable space vehicles are the ultimate goal pursued by the space industry.
Summary FAQ
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The most important new effort this time was to use the launch tower’s robotic arm to directly capture the spacecraft’s upper stage for the first time a day after Starship completed orbit, thereby confirming the recovery capability of the entire rocket segment.
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If successful, this will be the first opportunity to fully recover an orbital launch system, marking a significant breakthrough in the space industry’s pursuit of fully reusable vehicles, and will also help significantly reduce launch and mission costs.
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SpaceX has previously successfully grabbed Starship’s super-heavy thruster three times, allowing it to return vertically to the launch site after liftoff and then be picked up by the launch tower’s robotic arm. This time it will challenge the upper stage of the spacecraft.
