SpaceX launches megarocket from South Texas, loses control during mid-mission
BOCA CHICA, Texas – SpaceX launched its ninth Starship flight test from South Texas on Tuesday evening but reported losing control of the rocket halfway through the test mission.
The launch occurred under mostly clear skies and the spacecraft was able to reach orbital altitude - a stark contrast to previous missions this year, which ended in explosions over the southwest Atlantic.
The Federal Aviation Administration gave the go-ahead for the Elon Musk-led company to proceed with the launch after determining that SpaceX had adequately addressed the causes of the March mishap, which had forced airplanes to scramble to avoid collisions with falling debris.
SpaceX had previously attributed the failure of the March test to the loss of multiple Raptor engines, which caused the rocket to lose control less than 10 minutes into the flight.
Spacex Given Federal Approval To Resume Starship Megarocket Test Launch After Spectacular Explosion
Although Tuesday's test flight lasted approximately an hour, it did not achieve all of its mission goals.
Less than 20 minutes into the mission, the Starship appeared unable to deploy dummy Starlink satellites and around 30 minutes in, fuel leaks were reported aboard the spacecraft.
Shortly after, the rocket appeared to enter an uncontrolled spin and was expected to crash harmlessly into the Indian Ocean.
Mission control had planned to observe the rocket's heat shield during its reentry phase, but due to the mid-flight issues, they were unsuccessful in completing all of Tuesday's planned milestones.
Unlike several previous missions that caused debris to rain down over active flight zones, SpaceX said the rocket was on a trajectory to land in a designated area that had been alerted prior to the mission.
Before the launch, the FAA said it was in contact with its counterparts in the United Kingdom, Bahamas, Mexico, Cuba and the Turks & Caicos Islands to monitor any long-range impacts from launches.
As of Tuesday evening, it was unclear whether the agency would initiate another lengthy investigation into the latest mishap.
""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," Musk stated after the failure.
Spacex Starship Explosion Causes Scrambled Flights As Debris Rains Down Over Atlantic
The Starship spacecraft is being developed with the long-term goal of carrying astronauts to the Moon and, potentially, Mars, but SpaceX has not publicly disclosed a timeline for when the rocket will be certified for human space travel.
Several previous test flights have encountered challenges, leading to uncertainty about the objectives of Nasa's Artemis program.
The Artemis program aims to return humans to the lunar surface by 2027, marking the first crewed Moon mission since Apollo 17 in December 1972.
The first Artemis mission launched in November 2022 using a Boeing Space Launch System rocket and the Orion spacecraft.
The next mission, Artemis II, is expected to be a crewed flight, but it also will not involve SpaceX's Starship, which likely will not be used until at least Artemis III.
Depending on the outcome of any future investigation, the next Starship launch is unlikely to occur before mid-summer.Original article source: SpaceX launches megarocket from South Texas, loses control during mid-mission
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