SpaceX replacing two engines on Starship prototype #9
Capitalism in space: After the static fire engine tests earlier this week, SpaceX has decided to replace two of the Raptor engines in its ninth Starship prototype before moving on to its 50,000 foot test flight.
“Two of the engines need slight repairs, so will be switched out,” SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk said via Twitter early this morning (Jan. 15).
Musk did not give a target launch date for SN9. But he did say, in another tweet, that it’s “probably wise” to perform another static fire with the vehicle after the engine swap is complete. So a weekend launch for SN9 seems pretty unlikely.
Makes sense, but I must admit a bit of disappointment. I was really hoping that the next flight would occur on the same day NASA attempts its first static fire test of the core stage of SLS. The contrast would have been edifying.
Personally this delay is great for me, as I will be out in the country caving this entire weekend, and would have missed it if it had occurred during the weekend. I will miss the SLS static fire test, but that will be far less interesting (unless something goes wrong).
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Capitalism in space: After the static fire engine tests earlier this week, SpaceX has decided to replace two of the Raptor engines in its ninth Starship prototype before moving on to its 50,000 foot test flight.
“Two of the engines need slight repairs, so will be switched out,” SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk said via Twitter early this morning (Jan. 15).
Musk did not give a target launch date for SN9. But he did say, in another tweet, that it’s “probably wise” to perform another static fire with the vehicle after the engine swap is complete. So a weekend launch for SN9 seems pretty unlikely.
Makes sense, but I must admit a bit of disappointment. I was really hoping that the next flight would occur on the same day NASA attempts its first static fire test of the core stage of SLS. The contrast would have been edifying.
Personally this delay is great for me, as I will be out in the country caving this entire weekend, and would have missed it if it had occurred during the weekend. I will miss the SLS static fire test, but that will be far less interesting (unless something goes wrong).
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Well, the SLS test fire, scheduled to last 8 minutes, lasted a whole 1 minute and a few seconds before shutting down when they tried to test the TVC system. They are still talking like they are going to ship it to the Cape as is. As long as they don’t have to gimbal the engines, they should be “headed for success”.
Bunch of nuts! Maybe they will change their tune after “looking through the data”. They only said that about 50 times in the few minutes I watched it. They are calling it a “successful test” after only getting through 1/8th of the run and not being able to gimbal the engines at all.
Hey, Jim, just put really big fins on the rocket, that’ll do the trick. Who needs gimbals?
So if this was an actual mission then an abort would have initiated, and loss of mission. An abort at T+1 would be fun, aborting while those 2 SRBs are running full bore. Oh, and when they do the “Plugs Out Test” make sure no one is in the capsule.
From what i understand SpaceX is launching off of a flat pad.
They could put a deflector under the rocket to stop the impulses from coming back up into the engines.
Can’t afford a new keyboard right now, so I’m glad I didn’t have a mouthful of beverage when the NASA spokes-lady signed off with a brave “Go, Artemis!”
My first thought was “But not likely very far.”
As for launch thrust deflection, as long as we are talking three Raptors clustered close to the centerline, I wonder if a steel cone would do it? A V2 launch deflector on steroids.
“Wow, Dr. Bob!”(Muppet reference), you Really know how to taunt Murphy’s Law.
Seriously, I am a bit amazed. What critical hardware associated with the main engines could have failed? I find this a bit disconcerting because the Space Shuttle Main Engines are heritage hardware with only one issue (from a gold plug?).
P.S. I hope you share some of spelunking pictures when you get back.
Ray,
My understanding regarding Starship is that one of the main design features is to be unaffected by the unprepared surfaces on Mars and the Moon. SpaceX could make their life easier by putting in a deflector shield at the test launch facility, but then they would not be prepared to compensate for debris damage where there is no manual repair capability.
Michael, that is an interesting objective, one that I had not heard stated from Musk, but which makes perfect sense.
A key component to achieving that goal would seem to be the use of upper-body thrusters as on the Lunar Starship, which I have assumed would also be required for the Mars version.
So I have tended to regard the current Starships as immediate precursors to a LEO / Circumlunar / P2P version, which would only have to deal with well-prepared Earth surfaces. But a simple concrete pad, only coated with the standard flame trench coating, strikes me as a bit too lightly “well-prepared”.
Perhaps then first-generation Starships should either be operated on more traditional purpose-built launch / land surfaces, or adopt upper-hull thrusters from the beginning?