The SpaceX Starship is heading for the KnoxCon installation after a historically stable fire

The SpaceX Starship is heading for the KnoxCon installation after a historically stable fire

SpaceX CEO Alan Musk has confirmed that Starship and Raptor’s first triple-engine static fire was a success, opening the door to the installation of the nose stone.

About 3:13 pm CDT, October 20, Starship Serial No. 8 (SN8) Successfully Three Raptor engines caught fire Less than two hours after completing the first successful three-engine preburner test. With zero human intervention, SpaceX remotely isolated the rocket’s cryogenic liquid methane and oxygen propellant – the rest are now hot to use on a very regular basis. In an hour or less, SpaceX engineers linked the data to the data and concluded that all three Raptor engines were healthy after their partial ignition tests.

Effectively reset to a steady state, SpaceX once again processed Starship SN8’s propellant tanks with a small amount of supercooled LX and a small amount of LCH4, almost exactly a reflection of the preburner test. About 50 minutes after the recycling started and 25 minutes after the propellant loading, Starship SN8 set fire to three raptors at the same time – a huge milestone for any rocket engine. The static fire is now complete, the Starship SN8 has been cleared to become the first functional prototype to reach its full 50m (~ 165 feet) height.

Shortly before Musk confirmed the success of the SN8 static fire, SpaceX canceled the October 20 static fire window and planned to close several new roads on Wednesday, October 21. Unlike the company’s latest steady fire shutdown, it lasted from 9pm to 6am, with SpaceX’s new Wednesday scheduled for 7am to 3pm and 3pm to 5pm local (CDT). Is.

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While a minor data point, in the context of the success of Starship SN8’s steady fire, the closure alone made it clear that SpaceX planned to launch the Starship SN8 on October 21. Muscat confirmed that the ideas were published a few hours after the road was closed.

it’s not Completely Clear but many observers believe Wednesday’s 7 a.m. to 12 p.m. window is needed to transport a large, new crane to the ਐ 2 mile between SpaceX’s Boca Chika factory and launch facilities. The stacked nose portion of the Starship SN8 will then likely be installed on the same self-propelled mobile transporters (SPMTs) and rolled on the launch pad from 3pm to 5pm, after which the nose will be lifted and the starship Will be stacked on top of SN8.

A perspective comparison of the nose parts of Starship MK1 (left) and Starship SN8 illustrates some of the improvements made by SpaceX in 12 months. (NASASpaceflight – Nomadd)
The new crane above was loaded onto an SPMT shortly after the SN8’s steady fire. (NASSpaceflight – Bokachigal)

SpaceX had already fully stacked the Starship prototype once the nose part of the MK1 was temporarily integrated into its tank section to become the focus of CEO Alan Musk’s October 2019 Starship event. It is unclear why SpaceX will not use one of the mobile cranes rented for Starship Tank Section operations (and stacking MK1) in the past, so it remains to be seen what exactly was used to close Wednesday’s road closure. Will go.

SpaceX has stacked the Starship prototype at full height only once before. (Teslarati – Eric Ralph)

However, SpaceX’s plan to close the road ended with a wildcard. Once installed, the plan is to perform a second triple-raptor static fire while only propellant taken from the SN8’s title tanks – small landing tanks designed to hold landing propellant, of which Located at the tip of a starship’s nose. On October 21 and 22, SpaceX still has two closures from 9pm to 6pm for “SN8 Static Fire” testing. Applied early October 20, before the SN8’s successful static fire, the most likely explanation being a simple clerical error or misinformation, Cameron County or SpaceX failed to properly communicate that the next static fire test windows Is no longer needed.

If the intention was to maintain a steady fire barrier, it would mean that SpaceX – presumably at Musk’s urging – wanted to set up the nose of the starship SN8 in a matter of hours. It’s almost unheard of that the Knoxcon – Starship SN8’s Knoxcon – powered by Tesla motorized forward flaps, a liquid oxygen header tank, mirrors and plenty of plumbing – could be fitted and ready for inspection in less than 12 hours. With the exception of an amazing bar of merging the nose and tank parts of the SN8, the tip of the nose has to be welded to the rest of the SN8 and the weld inspected – usually a multi-day process.

Starship SN8 is high after completing the first triple-raptor static fire test. (NASASpaceflight – Nomadd)

Despite how fast SpaceX spins and how Alan Musk, CEO of Dead Set, is increasing the barriers that push and break boundaries, it seems reasonable to assume that Starship SN8 can be fully integrated and now The second stationary fire may be ready for testing in a few days. . Once completed, the SN8 will be ready to attempt the Starship’s first high-altitude flight test, launching a 15km (9.3 mi) km non-stop skydiver-style landing attempt. .

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About the author: Raven Weber

Musicaholic. Unapologetic alcohol maven. Social media expert. Award-winning coffee evangelist. Typical thinker.

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