by SpaceX conducted the seventh flight test of its Starship launch vehicle on Thursday, which the company called “the most powerful” Starship ever — and the only fully reusable one.
However, it was a mixed bag for the aerospace giant as they successfully captured the first stage booster upon its return to Earth, but lost communication with the spacecraft as it flew into space.
The more than 400-foot-long rocket, powered by 33 Raptor engines, appeared to successfully lift off from SpaceX’s launch pad at its starbase near Brownsville, Texas, at 4:37 p.m. CT.
But minutes into the mission, ground control announced during a live stream of the mission that all communications with the ship had been lost.
The company said it lost several engines and telemetry and the ship was lost.
There were no astronauts on board the test flight mission.
SpaceX added that the rocket deployed Thursday was a new version of the Starship.
While the spacecraft is lost, the super-heavy first stage booster managed a controlled descent back to the launch tower, where it was picked up by the launch tower’s giant robotic arms. This is considered one of the most challenging aspects of the mission.
Thursday’s feat marked the second time SpaceX was able to return and capture the stage booster using the launch tower.
Following the spacecraft’s loss, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) briefly announced it would slow flights in and around Florida due to the possibility of falling debris from the SpaceX launch.
Footage of debris falling from the sky was seen over the Turks and Caicos Islands on Thursday.
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SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took to social media on Thursday to comment on the launch, saying there may have been an oxygen or fuel leak in the cavity above the ship’s engine firewall.
“Preliminary indications indicate that we had an oxygen/fuel leak in the cavity above the ship’s engine firewall that was large enough to build up pressure beyond the vent capacity,” Musk wrote on X.
“Aside from obviously re-checking for leaks, we will be adding fire suppression to that volume and probably increasing the vent area,” Musk added.
He noted that none of the company’s findings so far would result in the next launch being pushed back beyond next month.
Musk shared a video of the falling debris and wrote, “Success is uncertain, but entertainment is guaranteed!”
Despite the loss, SpaceX has high hopes for the future of the Starship spacecraft. Unlike the Falcon 9 rocket, which has been used for years to launch satellites and astronauts into orbit with a partially reusable design, SpaceX says Starship will be fully reusable and will eventually include a heat shield that can be quickly redeployed without significant renovations can.
SpaceX says Starship can carry larger payloads such as satellites and cargo than other launch vehicles and can support long-duration missions to the moon and possibly Mars.
Additionally, the company says the launch system will eventually be able to carry up to 100 people on long-haul interplanetary flights.
According to SpaceX, the test flight introduced a redesigned upper stage with improvements such as an improved heat shield, increased fuel capacity and updated avionics.
The company says the updates will improve the vehicle’s reliability and enable longer, more complex missions.
During the now-aborted mission, the spacecraft planned to deploy ten Starlink satellite simulators for the first time, testing its ability to carry payloads in space.
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The simulators were to be placed on a suborbital trajectory, with a splashdown in the Indian Ocean planned.
The mission planned to test new materials and design changes to improve the spacecraft’s heat resistance during re-entry.
Before the launch, the company said it intentionally removed heat tiles to test the vehicle’s heat resistance.
SpaceX planned to use data from the test flight to refine the design for future missions.
SpaceX loses spacecraft after hitting rocket booster during test flight originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
