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Use all available thrust to get into orbit. The faster you get there, the less gravity loss. Once in orbit, use the most efficient engines (rVac). Also rVac for deorbit.
On landing, use the thrust vectoring sea level engines (like during the test hops).
For the first time, simultaneous cryo test on booster and ship while stacked! You can see the frost lines on both vehicles; barely visible on the ship.
Here is a Timelapse video of the test.
Here is a Timelapse video of the test.
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Yesterday the S24/B7 CH4 tanks were partially filled and then detanked (Tuesdays test was the LOX tanks only). Great to see these tests being performed on the full stack that is planned to go to orbit (as far as we know). Of course the tests also check out the GSE systems.
NASA released this showing SH/Starship milestones to date and what remains to be done. The vehicles are going to be de-stacked for the B7 33 engine static fire.
And by the way, there is a B7/S24 cryo prop loading test going on right now, or maybe it’s just a GSE test, I’m not sure. Check out the LabPadre livestream.
Eric Berger reports SpaceX is now building a Raptor engine a day, NASA says
That is absurd on so many levels.
dhanson865
Well-Known Member
from the same article
>Kirasich said SpaceX is presently targeting early December for a test flight of Starship and Super Heavy, although this timeline is dependent upon a number of factors, including a full 33-engine static fire test of Super Heavy, an FAA launch license, and final preparation of ground systems at SpaceX's Starbase launch facility in South Texas.
>After this initial test flight, Kirasich said NASA is tracking three additional flight tests of Starship for fueling demonstrations. The second test, Kirasich said, will entail a tank-to-tank transfer of propellant, followed by a Starship-to-Starship transfer of propellant, to a complete fueling of Starship from a depot and a long-duration flight to mimic the in-space time of a lunar mission.
>SpaceX plans to keep its low-Earth orbit propellant depots topped off with fuel for missions other than Artemis, Kirasich added. "So it's not like every time we go to the Moon we're going to start with an empty depot," he said.
>Depending on how well SpaceX's in-flight demonstrations go, Kirasich said the nominal target for an uncrewed test flight of Starship to the surface of the Moon—and back up to orbit around the Moon—is toward the end of 2024.
The terminology used there is interesting. What is “tank-to-tank”? Maybe that means “Starship to depot vehicle”?
I understand the “Starship-to-Starship” concept because that is what SpaceX has shown in animations.
If I recall correctly, the nosecone of S26 was moved out of the assembly tent with no tiles — which is not standard procedure — and it seems possible it will become the first depot vehicle. S27 has tiles.
Numbers 2 and 3 are Starship to Starship (partial, and full refuel (which means a lot if 2s previously), so maybe 1 is a dual tank payload flown on a Starship?
Comments from NASA’s Kirasich about the explosion during the B7 spin prime test last July, at https://spacenews.com/nasa-predicts-first-starship-orbital-launch-as-soon-as-december/
The implication is that maybe someone got fired over that incident.
This photo demonstrates the mounting of the grid fins very nicely.
More "2 on one side, 2 on the other", rather than 4 equally-spaced fins.
Cool. I did not know this, great photo for all good reasons, thanks.
Yes, in the Tim Dodd interview earlier this year Elon talked about this difference from F9 and how he thought that probably only 3 fins were actually necessary and maybe even just two. I think it depends on how effective the chines on the booster turn out to be. Note the relationship of the position of the chines to the position of the fins.
Fewer fins, less weight, better performance.
How is it the Starship does not have grid fins but is able to control precisely in the last minute and seconds of landing?
This wing like things (chines?) can control when the rocket is falling horizontally higher on the atmosphere, but once it gets vertical how is the rocket movement controlled through the air?
This wing like things (chines?) can control when the rocket is falling horizontally higher on the atmosphere, but once it gets vertical how is the rocket movement controlled through the air?
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My guess is that the atmospheric flight modes are either 1) falling horizontally using the canards etc or 2) vertical using the gimballed thrust of the raptors. There's no real flight mode where its falling in the atmosphere vertically, un-powered.
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