The 120-ton Starship rocket not only took to the skies on its fourth test flight, but both stages also returned, with the booster landing in the Gulf of Mexico and the upper stage experiencing a messy reentry. This test brings the super heavy lifting vehicle closer to achieving reusability.
Starship Integrated Flight Test 4 was one for the books, if only for the breathtaking views of the rocket being pummeled by plasma on its way back down through Earth’s atmosphere.
SpaceX launched its Starship rocket from the company’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas at 8:50 a.m. ET on Thursday. The rocket was loaded with more than 10 million pounds (4,500 metric tons) of propellant.
The rocket’s ascent went smoothly, although one of its 33 Raptor engines failed to ignite shortly after liftoff. The previous two tests of the rocket showed that all 33 engines were operating at nominal capacity during the flights. The engines were concerned after the starship’s first test flight on April 20, 2023, when several engines failed during takeoff and the rocket exploded just minutes after launch. This time the engine failure did not affect the Starship test flight, but it is a possible point of concern regarding engine reliability.
After launch, the starship performed a successful hot stage separation, shutting down all but three Raptor Super Heavy Booster engines and igniting six second stage Raptor engines before separation. The starship then jettisoned the booster and hot stage adapter. According to SpaceX, future versions of the upper stage will carry an integrated hot stage adapter, eliminating the need to discard hardware after stage separation.
After its separation, the Super Heavy performed a booster flip and landing that sent it towards the injection zone. This is what it’s all about: The sweet return of a starship.
“The cost for these flight tests is data,” SpaceX he wrote at X. “Based on what we accomplished during the third flight test of the starship, our primary objective today is to overcome the extreme heat on reentry.”
The last time a rocket took off into the sky it was March 14th. During this flight, the Starship successfully performed stage separation, completed second stage engine burns for the duration, demonstrated an internal fuel transfer for NASA, and tested the Starlink dispenser door. The mission lasted an hour and 49 minutes before the upper stage disintegrated during reentry.
This time the rocket survived its controlled return. The starship underwent peak heating and maximum aerodynamic pressure, using flaps to steer the vehicle as it descended through the atmosphere at hypersonic speeds. Many of the 18,000 heat shield plates flew off during reentry and one of the vehicle’s front flaps in particular was seen fighting for its life in dramatic footage captured by cameras mounted on the rocket.
According to the company, SpaceX placed one thin heat shield plate and removed two others before the rocket’s launch to measure heat in untiled areas and test thermal shielding capabilities. Footage of the re-entry dramatically showed the rocket becoming hot on descent, with plasma enveloping the vehicle during its descent.
Despite the heat, the starship continued its controlled descent and performed a landing burn before splashing up in the Indian Ocean about 65 minutes after liftoff. “Despite the loss of many plates and a damaged flap, the starship made it to a soft landing in the ocean!” SpaceX CEO Elon Musk he wrote on X. Rocket Billionaire he added that the flap issue should be resolved for the upcoming starship flight. He stated, “The newer version of the starship has the forward flaps moved to leeward. This will help improve reliability, ease of manufacture and payload to orbit.”
Previous Starship flights have prompted an investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration, but SpaceX may be in the clear this time. This could mean that we will soon see the launch of another Starship prototype, ready for the next show.
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