SpaceX successfully launched the third flight test of Starship, the world’s largest and most powerful launch system, on March 14, 2024. This was Starship’s first successful launch attempt, after two failed flight tests. The fully integrated Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket are together called Starship. The Starship spacecraft is the second stage of the system, while Super Heavy is the upper stage and booster.
Starship’s third flight test successfully completed most of its mission objectives such as the burning of both the stages during ascent; opening and closing of the rocket’s payload door, known as the Pez bay door; propellant transfer demonstration during the coast phase; and a re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere. However, it was destroyed during atmospheric re-entry. According to a Guardian report, SpaceX’s Dan Huot said that the ship has been lost, and hence, there was no splashdown.
One of the objectives was to make Starship splash down in the Indian Ocean. But recovery of the spacecraft was not intended. The fact that Starship has been lost, and did not make a splashdown implies that the spacecraft either burned up or was divided into multiple pieces during re-entry.
The coast phase was the period following the successful completion of Super Heavy booster’s Raptor engine burnout. All 33 Raptor engines of Super Heavy were fired.
Liftoff of Starship! pic.twitter.com/FaNcasuKaq
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) March 14, 2024
Timeline of the mission
A few minutes after launch, the Raptor engines of the Starship launch system were ignited during hot-staging separation, as planned. Hot-staging is a process in rocket science in which a particular stage fires its engines before separating from the other stage.
In the case of the Starship system, Super Heavy’s Raptor engines were ignited before the separation. Following the separation, the Super Heavy booster executed a flip manoeuvre.
After the Raptor engine burning was complete, the Starship system entered a coast phase, SpaceX said on X (formerly Twitter).
During the coast phase, Starship exhibited a propellant transfer demonstration.
The rocket’s payload door was successfully opened and closed, marking the completion of an important objective.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that at 5,000 tonnes, Starship is the largest flying object ever made.
During atmospheric re-entry, the ‘super hot’ plasma surrounding the Starship system grew, as seen in a video shared by Musk.
Watch the super hot plasma field grow as Starship re-enters the atmosphere! pic.twitter.com/to4UOF2Kpd
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 14, 2024
He said that Starship will make life interplanetary.
The Starship system represents a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
If a series of flight tests are completely successful, Starship can be classified as a fully reusable transportation system capable of ferrying both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, to help humans return to the Moon, and enable them to travel to Mars and beyond.
According to SpaceX, the Starship system will be able to carry up to 100 people on long-duration, interplanetary flights, and also enable satellite delivery and the development of a Moon base.
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