SpaceX’s Starship rocket system reached several milestones in its second test flight before the rocket booster and spacecraft exploded over the Gulf of Mexico.

SpaceX’s Starship rocket system reached several milestones in its second test flight before the rocket booster and spacecraft exploded over the Gulf of Mexico.

  • Diplomjodler@feddit.deEnglish
    394·
    11 months ago

    The main focus of this test was stage separation. In that sense it was a roaring success. Also, looks like they managed not to trash the landing pad this time. So that will make it easier to get the next flight approved. But clearly there’s still a long way to go.

    • MrJ2k@lemmy.worldEnglish
      362·
      11 months ago

      Also demonstrated the flight termination systems, for both stages, it seems.

      It appears they got their engine development under control too. Every one lit and burned effectively full duration, on both stages.

      So basically they’ve fixed every issue displayed in the first flight I’d say.

        • weew@lemmy.caEnglish
          2·
          11 months ago

          I mean, the entire purpose of the “blow up the ship” system is to blow it up, so that part worked correctly

        • TheHotze@lemmy.worldEnglish
          161·
          11 months ago

          Yes, but they blew up correctly. What they are saying is it is all new issues and the old ones are fixed. This is good for test vehicles.

          • NotMyOldRedditName@lemmy.worldEnglish
            5·
            11 months ago

            Just for anyone wondering what blew up correctly means. The flight termination system didn’t work properly on the 1st launch. Starship and the booster didn’t separate and it tumbled in the air for too long. That puts people at risk as it might go out of the safe area.

            This time, when whatever went wrong went wrong, the system triggered properly and both vehicles blew up.

    • MeanEYE@lemmy.worldEnglish
      528·
      11 months ago

      They pick and chose what was the “focus” every time there’s a launch. In reality focus is for everything to work. It didn’t work this time either. It was worse the first time, but this time at the moment it looks better. Things worked out but second stage blew up in LEO which can cause all kinds of issues with debris and other satellites.

      • Cethin@lemmy.zipEnglish
        8·
        11 months ago

        I know you’re just trying to be negative, I assume because of Musk (I hate him too). You’re not being accurate, on purpose or otherwise it doesn’t matter. It didn’t even reach orbit. How did it blow up in Low Earth Orbit?

        • MeanEYE@lemmy.worldEnglish
          17·
          11 months ago

          Am not trying just to be negative. Explosion disperses debris in all directions, and it wasn’t a small explosion and it wasn’t a small spaceship either but more to the point to quote wikipedia:

          The term LEO region is also used for the area of space below an altitude of 2,000 km (1,200 mi) (about one-third of Earth’s radius).[3] Objects in orbits that pass through this zone, even if they have an apogee further out or are sub-orbital, are carefully tracked since they present a collision risk to the many LEO satellites.

          So I should have said LEO region, but still. Rocket exploded at 146km, which can pose issues. Hopefully it won’t. But it remains to be seen. Kessler syndrome is a real threat.

          • Cethin@lemmy.zipEnglish
            6·
            11 months ago

            It’s about velocity, not altitude. The pieces from the explosion would need to get a fairly dramatic dv addition prograde to end up near orbital. The explosion seems pretty undirected, so the force will be spread in all directions, so most of the force won’t be prograde. Even still, it can’t be orbital. It’d need some other force added later on its trajectory or it eventually had to pass through the same altitude that the explosion happened, which is in-atmosphere and will cause fairly quick decay. There is no risk of Kessler syndrome. It could potentially have posed a risk to some very low satellites, but we’d already have seen that happen by now if it were going to.