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6 days ago
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SpaceX's Ninth Starship Test Flight Delivers Mixed Results
In its ninth test flight, SpaceX's launch vehicle Starship once again reached space, surpassing problems that prematurely ended its two previous test launches. But as with those ill-fated preceding flights, in this one, Starship still failed to reach the ground intact. Instead the vehicle spun out of control and disintegrated during atmospheric reentry. Although each Starship test thus far has succeeded in demonstrating powerful new technical advances that are crucial for the program's further progress, this marks the third flight in a row in which the titanic vehicle suffered a 'rapid unscheduled disassembly' that sent fiery debris cascading down to Earth. All that effort, it's hoped, will prove worthwhile if or when Starship enters regular operations because SpaceX aims to make the vehicle, by far, the largest and most capable fully reusable spacecraft ever flown. In the latest test, around 50 minutes after launch, SpaceX confirmed that Starship met its demise. At first, everything in the vehicle's flight appeared to be going well. Starship—a 40-story-tall 'stack' that is composed of a giant, 33-engine Super Heavy booster and a 171-foot-long spacecraft powered by six additional engines—lifted off as planned from SpaceX's launch site in Starbase, Tex., at 7:37 P.M. EDT on Tuesday. But cheers were somewhat subdued until about 10 minutes after launch—when operators officially determined that the spacecraft's trajectory was nominal, taking it on a ballistic suborbital path through outer space. [Sign up for Today in Science, a free daily newsletter] 'Ship engine cutoff—three most beautiful words in the English language,' declared Dan Huot, a communications manager at SpaceX, during the company's livestream of the flight test near the launch site. Around him, sighs of relief could be heard as SpaceX employees began to ascertain that the day's flight would not be a repeat of the previous two, each of which had resulted in the vehicle exploding over the Atlantic Ocean less than 10 minutes after launch. Around 18 minutes after Tuesday's launch, however, issues began to emerge. First, operators decided not to deploy Starlink satellite demonstrations as planned because of a stuck payload door. Then, about a half an hour after launch, SpaceX mission control reported that suspected propellant leaks were driving the vehicle into a spin, which doomed it to burn up in the atmosphere during reentry—raining debris over the Indian Ocean. 'We're not going to get all of that reentry data that we're still really looking forward to,' Huot admitted in the livestream. 'This is a new generation of ship that ... we're really trying to put through the wringer, as there's a whole lot we still need to learn.' Meanwhile, although the Starship vehicle itself showed improved performance, the Super Heavy booster that helped it reach space ran into problems of its own. Moments after firing its engines to come in for a landing in the Atlantic Ocean, the booster instead broke apart. This wasn't entirely unexpected; in keeping with SpaceX's 'test to failure' approach, the Super Heavy had attempted to reenter in a different, potentially fuel-saving orientation that subjected the booster to more intense aerodynamic forces. Despite its unplanned disassembly, the booster did mark a significant milestone for SpaceX: for the first time, it flew with a nearly full suite of flight-proven engines that were previously used during Starship's seventh test. And the booster remains a marvelous demonstration of SpaceX's innovation; a Super Heavy previously made spaceflight history when it became the first rocket ever to be caught in midair with two mechanical arms. In the new launch, the Super Heavy was able to do its intended jobs of bringing Starship to space and testing new reentry techniques, explained Jessie Anderson, SpaceX's senior manufacturing engineering manager, during the flight's livestream. 'There's always a chance we don't reach every objective that we set for ourselves,' Anderson added, 'but success comes from what we learn on days like today.' On X, former NASA deputy administrator Lori Garver praised SpaceX's transparency but noted these were 'not the results we were hoping for.' Garver was instrumental in forging the space agency's partnership with SpaceX, which helped spark the company's unprecedented dominance of commercial launch services upon which NASA now heavily relies. Starship is the prized cornerstone of SpaceX's ambitious plan to build human settlements on Mars and is also slated to ferry crews to the lunar surface in a couple of years for NASA's Artemis III mission. Given the high stakes for the vehicle, its test program's mixed results are disappointing, to say the least. Notably, the previous two attempts, Flights 7 and 8, each ended with two spectacular explosions over the Atlantic Ocean. For Flight 8 in particular, the engines shut down unexpectedly minutes after launch, causing the spacecraft to essentially fall apart and self-destruct in midair. SpaceX received some public backlash after the spacecraft debris, which the company claimed would pose minimal risks, led to multiple midflight diversions for passenger airplanes that were under threat. Nevertheless, SpaceX appeared stalwart and even optimistic about Flights 7 and 8, calling the latter's mishap an 'energetic event' that occurred because of hardware complications. Last week the company said both explosions had a 'distinctly different' cause. And in a press release that followed the launch of Flight 9, it noted that Flight 8 greatly informed the upgrades and modifications to Starship for the latest test. 'Developmental testing by definition is unpredictable,' SpaceX said in a prelaunch press release for Flight 9. 'But by putting hardware in a flight environment as frequently as possible, we're able to quickly learn and execute design changes as we seek to bring Starship online as a fully and rapidly reusable vehicle.' What does Starship's questionable status mean for SpaceX's long-touted goal of 'making life multiplanetary'? If anything, it suggests the company's projections for the vehicle's regular, routine operation have been and remain unrealistically optimistic. Last year SpaceX founder Elon Musk stated in a social media post that the company plans to launch 'about five' uncrewed Starships to Mars in two years. In another post shortly after Flight 9's mixed results, he touted the vehicle's partial success and predicted that the next few flights would occur at a fast pace of about one per month. Whether or not such haste is feasible, it would certainly be desirable, given the pressure SpaceX faces to deliver on its lofty promises.
Scientific American
28-05-2025
- Science
- Scientific American
SpaceX's Ninth Starship Test Flight Delivers Mixed Results
In its ninth test flight, SpaceX 's launch vehicle Starship once again reached space, surpassing problems that prematurely ended its two previous test launches. But as with those ill-fated preceding flights, in this one, Starship still failed to reach the ground intact. Instead the vehicle spun out of control and disintegrated during atmospheric reentry. Although each Starship test thus far has succeeded in demonstrating powerful new technical advances that are crucial for the program's further progress, this marks the third flight in a row in which the titanic vehicle suffered a 'rapid unscheduled disassembly' that sent fiery debris cascading down to Earth. All that effort, it's hoped, will prove worthwhile if or when Starship enters regular operations because SpaceX aims to make the vehicle, by far, the largest and most capable fully reusable spacecraft ever flown. In the latest test, around 50 minutes after launch, SpaceX confirmed that Starship met its demise. At first, everything in the vehicle's flight appeared to be going well. Starship —a 40-story-tall 'stack' that is composed of a giant, 33-engine Super Heavy booster and a 171-foot-long spacecraft powered by six additional engines—lifted off as planned from SpaceX's launch site in Starbase, Tex., at 7:37 P.M. EDT on Tuesday. But cheers were somewhat subdued until about 10 minutes after launch—when operators officially determined that the spacecraft's trajectory was nominal, taking it on a ballistic suborbital path through outer space. On supporting science journalism If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today. 'Ship engine cutoff—three most beautiful words in the English language,' declared Dan Huot, a communications manager at SpaceX, during the company's livestream of the flight test near the launch site. Around him, sighs of relief could be heard as SpaceX employees began to ascertain that the day's flight would not be a repeat of the previous two, each of which had resulted in the vehicle exploding over the Atlantic Ocean less than 10 minutes after launch. Around 18 minutes after Tuesday's launch, however, issues began to emerge. First, operators decided not to deploy Starlink satellite demonstrations as planned because of a stuck payload door. Then, about a half an hour after launch, SpaceX mission control reported that suspected propellant leaks were driving the vehicle into a spin, which doomed it to burn up in the atmosphere during reentry—raining debris over the Indian Ocean. 'We're not going to get all of that reentry data that we're still really looking forward to,' Huot admitted in the livestream. 'This is a new generation of ship that ... we're really trying to put through the wringer, as there's a whole lot we still need to learn.' Meanwhile, although the Starship vehicle itself showed improved performance, the Super Heavy booster that helped it reach space ran into problems of its own. Moments after firing its engines to come in for a landing in the Atlantic Ocean, the booster instead broke apart. This wasn't entirely unexpected; in keeping with SpaceX's 'test to failure' approach, the Super Heavy had attempted to reenter in a different, potentially fuel-saving orientation that subjected the booster to more intense aerodynamic forces. Despite its unplanned disassembly, the booster did mark a significant milestone for SpaceX: for the first time, it flew with a nearly full suite of flight-proven engines that were previously used during Starship's seventh test. And the booster remains a marvelous demonstration of SpaceX's innovation; a Super Heavy previously made spaceflight history when it became the first rocket ever to be caught in midair with two mechanical arms. In the new launch, the Super Heavy was able to do its intended jobs of bringing Starship to space and testing new reentry techniques, explained Jessie Anderson, SpaceX's senior manufacturing engineering manager, during the flight's livestream. 'There's always a chance we don't reach every objective that we set for ourselves,' Anderson added, 'but success comes from what we learn on days like today.' On X, former NASA deputy administrator Lori Garver praised SpaceX's transparency but noted these were 'not the results we were hoping for.' Garver was instrumental in forging the space agency's partnership with SpaceX, which helped spark the company's unprecedented dominance of commercial launch services upon which NASA now heavily relies. Starship is the prized cornerstone of SpaceX's ambitious plan to build human settlements on Mars and is also slated to ferry crews to the lunar surface in a couple of years for NASA's Artemis III mission. Given the high stakes for the vehicle, its test program's mixed results are disappointing, to say the least. Notably, the previous two attempts, Flights 7 and 8, each ended with two spectacular explosions over the Atlantic Ocean. For Flight 8 in particular, the engines shut down unexpectedly minutes after launch, causing the spacecraft to essentially fall apart and self-destruct in midair. SpaceX received some public backlash after the spacecraft debris, which the company claimed would pose minimal risks, led to multiple midflight diversions for passenger airplanes that were under threat. Nevertheless, SpaceX appeared stalwart and even optimistic about Flights 7 and 8, calling the latter's mishap an ' energetic event ' that occurred because of hardware complications. Last week the company said both explosions had a ' distinctly different ' cause. And in a press release that followed the launch of Flight 9, it noted that Flight 8 greatly informed the upgrades and modifications to Starship for the latest test. 'Developmental testing by definition is unpredictable,' SpaceX said in a prelaunch press release for Flight 9. 'But by putting hardware in a flight environment as frequently as possible, we're able to quickly learn and execute design changes as we seek to bring Starship online as a fully and rapidly reusable vehicle.' What does Starship's questionable status mean for SpaceX's long-touted goal of ' making life multiplanetary '? If anything, it suggests the company's projections for the vehicle's regular, routine operation have been and remain unrealistically optimistic. Last year SpaceX founder Elon Musk stated in a social media post that the company plans to launch 'about five' uncrewed Starships to Mars in two years. In another post shortly after Flight 9's mixed results, he touted the vehicle's partial success and predicted that the next few flights would occur at a fast pace of about one per month. Whether or not such haste is feasible, it would certainly be desirable, given the pressure SpaceX faces to deliver on its lofty promises.
Telegraph
28-05-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
The critical errors that doomed Elon Musk's Starship rocket
Elon Musk's Starship rocket had been cruising for almost half an hour when it became clear something was wrong. After blasting off from Starbase, SpaceX's sprawling complex on the Texas coast, Musk's rocket had successfully reached orbit and was falling back towards Earth. But as Starship descended, it began to spiral. Telemetry data and video feeds showed the ship rapidly losing control before tumbling through the upper atmosphere. 'We are in a little bit of a spin,' said Dan Huot, the SpaceX official hosting the company's livestream. The final images from the video feed showed ethereal plasma flashing around the vessel, melting its panels as temperatures hit 14,000 degrees Celsius. Signal was soon lost as the rocket suffered a 'rapid unscheduled disassembly', exploding over a vast area of the Indian Ocean. The rocket's demise will now be closely examined by SpaceX engineers as they prepare to launch a separate 400ft megarocket in just a few weeks. 'We are in a bit of a spin' Tuesday's launch marked the ninth test flight of Starship, building towards SpaceX's goal of producing a reusable spaceship that could one day fulfil Musk's dream of colonising Mars. The latest flight included several firsts for SpaceX that inch Musk towards that goal. Importantly, the company was able to reuse the 232ft booster stage – known as Super Heavy – from an earlier flight in which it landed successfully. SpaceX's Starship also flew further than in its two most recent tests. However, the post-mortem will seek to understand and rectify two key problems that threaten its multi-planetary ambitions. The first issue emerged as SpaceX attempted to deploy eight dummy satellites into space about 18 minutes into its mission, 120 miles above the Earth. Musk wants to use Starship to ferry thousands of his Starlink satellites into space, as well as other crucial material for future missions to the Moon and Mars. However, the hatch that was meant to release the satellites appeared to fail. Twelve minutes later, Hout said SpaceX had lost crucial control of the ship after a fuel leak. 'We are in a bit of a spin,' he said. 'We did spring a leak in some of the fuel tank systems inside Starship. A lot of those are used for your altitude control.' Minutes later, the ship burst into flames and exploded over the Indian Ocean. Nonetheless, Musk was quick to insist the mission was a 'big improvement' compared to previous attempts, as he said there was 'lots of good data to review'. 'With a test like this, success comes from what we learn,' SpaceX said after the mission. 'Today's test will help us improve Starship's reliability as SpaceX seeks to make life multi-planetary.' Mounting pressure Still, it is the third test flight out of three so far this year that has ended with the loss of a rocket, with each launch costing the company $100m. Shortly after the mission, Musk also pulled out of a scheduled livestream where he had planned to give an update on the company's plans to colonise Mars, perhaps in a sign there is still work to be done. It comes amid mounting pressure on the company. Nasa plans to use Musk's rockets for its Artemis III mission to the Moon in 2027, intended to return mankind to the lunar surface for the first time since 1972. Musk has also set SpaceX a typically ambitious target of human landings on Mars by 2029. For the most part, SpaceX analysts have argued that the company's approach of 'rapid iterative design' is helping the company move faster towards these targets. Its previous rockets, including its Falcon 1 and Falcon 9 designs, were built using such a process of constant trial and error. However, Chris Combs, an aerospace expert at the University of Texas at San Antonio, said on X after the mission: Ninth test flight in over two years No payloads (doors won't open now?) No Starship reuse Uncontrolled reentry Crew and Mars a distant dream I want to see this work but it feels like playing whack-a-mole with a very complex system full of failure modes at > $100M per swing… — Chris Combs (iterative design enjoyer) (@DrChrisCombs) May 28, 2025 The company will now hope to avoid a lengthy investigation into the failure, although the SpaceX team remains optimistic. As last night's livestream came to a close, Huot said: 'We're trying to do something that's impossibly hard. 'We said there's going to be bumps. There's going to be turns. But seeing that ship in space today was a hell of a moment for us.'
Daily Mirror
28-05-2025
- Science
- Daily Mirror
SpaceX Starship spins out of control in shock footage before falling apart
The SpaceX Starship leaked fuel, spun out of control, and made an uncontrolled re-entry after flying halfway around the world, likely disintegrating over the Indian Ocean SpaceX has lost another Starship this week after a failed test flight saw the rocket lose control mid-air before tumbling and falling apart moments before its scheduled splashdown. The spacecraft was launched on Tuesday in a mission that followed two other failures by billionaire Elon Musk's commercial space flight company. An early explosion left fuel leaking from the vessel, causing the rocket to spin uncontrollably. According to SpaceX, the flight team had lost altitude control as the rocket continued its re-entry. It comes after previous Starship explosions over the Gulf of Mexico this year. In March, a Starship rocket exploded during a test flight just after it was launched from Texas, halting flights and sparking warnings about flying spaceship debris. The SpaceX starship - a stainless-steel vessel standing 400 feet tall - is the world's largest and most powerful rocket, and its test flights are considered vital contributions to the US' space ambitions. After what appeared to be a promising start on Tuesday's mission, the massive rocket separated from the booster, just as six engines were fired to propel it upwards across the globe. SpaceX controllers also lost command of the vessel long after the engines failed. The company was hoping for a successful flight to prove the vehicle's capabilities, after previously saying it had learned from the past mistakes and made upgrades for this flight. The rocket's booster was supposed to splash down in one piece but it fell apart as it dropped back down toward the Gulf of Mexico. 'The last two months have been an absolute, like, gauntlet for a lot of people, and we're continuing to learn more about this ship and about this rocket,' Dan Huot, a SpaceX commentator, said on SpaceX's live broadcast. 'We are trying to do something that is impossibly hard.' In a post on X, Musk said the issues with the spacecraft were due to leaks that 'caused loss of main tank pressure during the coast and re-entry phase.' But that the company had 'lot of good data to review. Launch cadence for next 3 flights will be faster, at approximately 1 every 3 to 4 weeks.'
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First Post
28-05-2025
- Science
- First Post
Elon Musk's Starship fails again: Can his Mars dream survive another setback?
SpaceX's ninth Starship test flight ended in failure, with the spacecraft spinning out of control and disintegrating during reentry. The mission aimed to demonstrate critical capabilities for future Moon and Mars missions, but both the Starship and its Super Heavy booster were lost. What does this mean for Elon Musk's bold timeline to colonise Mars? read more SpaceX's next-generation Starship spacecraft atop its Super Heavy booster is launched on its ninth test at the company's launch pad in Starbase, Texas, US, May 27, 2025. File Image/Reuters SpaceX's latest attempt to demonstrate the viability of its massive Starship rocket — a crucial step in Elon Musk's vision of sending humans to Mars — ended in failure once again. The launch, which took place from the company's Starbase facility in Texas, marked the ninth integrated flight test of the Starship-Super Heavy system. While it managed to surpass the distance achieved in earlier attempts, the mission failed to accomplish several critical objectives. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The mission's objectives included deploying eight Starlink satellite simulators, performing an in-space engine relight and achieving a controlled reentry and splashdown in the Indian Ocean. Shortly after liftoff, signs of trouble began to emerge. The Super Heavy booster, tasked with propelling the upper-stage spacecraft out of Earth's atmosphere, failed to complete its planned splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico and instead broke apart mid-descent. Meanwhile, the upper-stage Starship vehicle continued coasting into suborbital space but experienced fuel leaks and began spiralling out of control before communication was lost entirely. 'Not looking great with a lot of our on-orbit objectives for today,' said SpaceX broadcaster Dan Huot during the company's livestream. One of the key failures occurred 18 minutes after launch when the rocket's mechanism designed to deploy a batch of Starlink satellite simulators malfunctioned. The payload bay door failed to open, cancelling the planned demonstration. 'Starship experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly,' SpaceX later confirmed, using the company's typical euphemism for in-flight explosions. As if the flight test was not exciting enough, Starship experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly. Teams will continue to review data and work toward our next flight test. With a test like this, success comes from what we learn, and today's test will help us improve Starship's… — SpaceX (@SpaceX) May 28, 2025 STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Why Starship is crucial to Musk's Mars plan Elon Musk's goal of making humanity a 'multi-planetary species' heavily relies on the success of Starship — the most powerful rocket ever constructed. The vehicle is designed to be fully reusable and capable of transporting both crew and cargo to the Moon, Mars and beyond. However, despite extensive redesigns and system upgrades across recent test flights, the latest mission's failure adds to a string of mishaps. The latest rocket was also the first to fly using a previously flown Super Heavy booster, highlighting SpaceX's long-term goal of achieving low-cost, rapid reusability. However, the booster's steep descent angle and intentional engine shutdown, meant to stress-test performance, ultimately led to its destruction. Starship's flight continued further than previous tests but still fell short of reaching its designated splashdown zone off the western coast of Australia. Fuel venting procedures were activated before the vehicle disintegrated roughly 45 minutes into what was supposed to be a 66-minute mission. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Musk noted on X that the rocket's failure was due to a leak in the primary fuel tank, while also touting 'a lot of good data to review' and vowing to accelerate the launch cadence to one every 3–4 weeks. Starship made it to the scheduled ship engine cutoff, so big improvement over last flight! Also, no significant loss of heat shield tiles during ascent. Leaks caused loss of main tank pressure during the coast and re-entry phase. Lot of good data to review. Launch cadence for… — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 28, 2025 Still, delays and technical issues raise concerns about SpaceX's ability to meet future deadlines, including those set by Nasa. SpaceX's broader vision includes establishing a human presence on Mars. The company has outlined plans to launch uncrewed missions to Mars as early as 2026, with the goal of building a self-sustaining colony. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD These missions would rely on the successful development and operation of the Starship system. What this means for Nasa's Moon missions Nasa has bet heavily on a modified version of the Starship upper stage for its Artemis programme, which aims to return astronauts to the lunar surface. The agency plans to use its Space Launch System and Orion capsule to transport astronauts to lunar orbit, where a waiting Starship will ferry them to and from the Moon. The first landing mission, Artemis 3, is scheduled for 2027 at the earliest, but that timeline now faces increasing uncertainty. Complicating matters further is political tension surrounding the Artemis programme itself. The Trump administration has pushed for a reevaluation of Nasa's current plans, including potential cancellation of the Space Launch System and Orion capsule. Musk himself has previously argued that lunar missions are a 'distraction' and that resources would be better directed straight toward Mars. Regardless of the destination, successful demonstration flights are essential before Starship can carry astronauts or large cargo payloads into deep space. The continued failures in test launches indicate SpaceX has considerable ground to cover before it can safely support such missions. How SpaceX is still on track While the latest test flight ended with yet another fiery breakup, SpaceX remains committed to its fast-paced, trial-by-fire development philosophy. The company embraces a 'fail fast, learn fast' approach that has helped it dominate commercial spaceflight, and Musk's confidence in the program appears unshaken — at least publicly. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Fans and enthusiasts gathered at nearby Isla Blanca Park and other vantage points to witness the launch. One tourist from Australia, who travelled with his family to witness the event, described it as 'super exciting to see' despite the failure, echoing the sentiment that even unsuccessful missions can yield valuable data, reported AFP. SpaceX has also made progress on other fronts. The company has successfully caught the Super Heavy booster using giant robotic arms on the launch tower during other recent tests — a feat critical to rapid rocket turnaround and cost reduction, although no such catch attempt was made during this flight. Regulatory authorities, including the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), have recently cleared SpaceX to increase its Starship launch frequency from five to 25 flights annually, even as environmental groups raise concerns about potential harm to local wildlife such as sea turtles and shorebirds. On another front, Musk is attempting to juggle SpaceX's technical challenges alongside his broader business and political engagements, including his outspoken support for US President Donald Trump. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Also Watch: With inputs from agencies
