Breaking: Starship prototype #9 tips over inside assembly building
It appears from the 24-hour live stream provided by LabPadre that the ninth Starship prototype tipped over inside the assembly building to rest against one wall. You can see it happen at about 8 seconds into the video below:
No word on whether anyone was hurt, nor any information about the cause. My guess is that it occurred during the operations to move this prototype to the launchpad.
UPDATE: It appears no one was hurt, but there is damage to the fins, which might also mean damage to the hull. This in turn might make it unsafe to fly this prototype, as the hull forms the walls of the methane/oxygen tanks.
The day has not been good for SpaceX. Earlier they had to scrub the launch of a commercial communications satellite at T-30 seconds for reasons that they did not provide. High altitude winds had delayed the launch an hour or so, but it appears this was not the reason. According to SpaceX’s website, “SpaceX is standing down from Friday’s launch attempt of the SXM-7 mission to perform additional ground system checkouts.” They are targeting Sunday for the next launch attempt.
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It appears from the 24-hour live stream provided by LabPadre that the ninth Starship prototype tipped over inside the assembly building to rest against one wall. You can see it happen at about 8 seconds into the video below:
No word on whether anyone was hurt, nor any information about the cause. My guess is that it occurred during the operations to move this prototype to the launchpad.
UPDATE: It appears no one was hurt, but there is damage to the fins, which might also mean damage to the hull. This in turn might make it unsafe to fly this prototype, as the hull forms the walls of the methane/oxygen tanks.
The day has not been good for SpaceX. Earlier they had to scrub the launch of a commercial communications satellite at T-30 seconds for reasons that they did not provide. High altitude winds had delayed the launch an hour or so, but it appears this was not the reason. According to SpaceX’s website, “SpaceX is standing down from Friday’s launch attempt of the SXM-7 mission to perform additional ground system checkouts.” They are targeting Sunday for the next launch attempt.
The support of my readers through the years has given me the freedom and ability to analyze objectively the ongoing renaissance in space, as well as the cultural changes -- for good or ill -- that are happening across America. Four years ago, just before the 2020 election I wrote that Joe Biden's mental health was suspect. Only in this year has the propaganda mainstream media decided to recognize that basic fact.
Fourteen years ago I wrote that SLS and Orion were a bad ideas, a waste of money, would be years behind schedule, and better replaced by commercial private enterprise. Even today NASA and Congress refuse to recognize this reality.
In 2020 when the world panicked over COVID I wrote that the panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Only in the past year have some of our so-called experts in the health field have begun to recognize these facts.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are five ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation:
5. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above. And if you buy the books through the ebookit links, I get a larger cut and I get it sooner.
Oh my, I hope everyone is OK. That should delay them a day or two. If it was ULA, to would be a year or two.
At least two of the four fins have been damaged. See pictures in the link. Perhaps it prevented further damage to the missile body through their “victim”. At least there does not appear to have been any serious injuries as there was no information on the spot that ambulances were on the way. The event happened some hours ago. The rocket’s attitude or position did not change up to now.
https://twitter.com/Erdayastronaut/status/1337427412590743555/photo/2
Right after personnel safety, I would be concerned about the building. SN9 can be replaced in days if necessary by SN10-SN11-SN12……….
It just wanted to look a bit more like the logo of LabPadre.
Ouch!
Okay, it’s pretty obvious to me SN-9 looked at what happened to SN-8, and took a World Cup-class dive!
Remind me how far along SN 10 is ?
I am still trying to figure out how this happened.’
‘
Did it slide off of its carrier?
Did one or two of the landing legs retract?
I can see at least procedure being updated real soon.
Thanks, Bob. Funny how the the lows come after a great success. I’ve been kinda down ever since the rampant voter fraud allowed the ecosocialists to steal the election from President Trump – it’d be nice have another SpaceX win.
Take a look at the picture at the link below. SpaceX used an old, now obsolete steel roller (originally planned for Starship’s production) as a weight to stabilize the SN9 stand and prevent it from tipping over, which did not seem to work. This is not exactly an ideal technical solution. What do you think? This seems like an unsafe working place to me, but I am not sure about the US rules.
https://twitter.com/ChrisUK27/status/1338062512932216832/photo/1
Some pictures of damage that SN 9 experienced yesterday after it toppled against the building wall. This fin has to be replaced. The dent can certainly be rebulged again. I haven’t found any information about what SN9 looks like at its lower part. It appears that SpaceX or Elon Musk have not yet issued an official statement on the incident.
https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=52398.0;attach=1998042;image
Addition: There is obviously also damage to one of the lower or rear fins. I hope that the joints of the fins have not been damaged.
https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=52398.0;attach=1998182;image
SpaceX Moves Quickly To Repair Damaged SN9
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSt0tqmDwHI