SpaceX says it is targeting October 13, 2024 for 5th Starship/Superheavy launch
Artist rendering of Superheavy being captured by
the tower chopsticks at landing. Click for video.
The hint last week that SpaceX might attempt its fifth test orbital launch of Starship/Superheavy launch by mid-October was confirmed yesterday by the company. It announced on its Starship/Superheavy webpage that it is now targeting October 13, 2024 for 5th Starship/Superheavy launch, “pending regulatory approval.”
SpaceX’s announcement noted that the flight’s primary goals will be an attempted chopstick landing of Superheavy at the launch tower in Boca Chica and a test of Starship’s ability to return and land using its newly redesigned heat shield.
The returning booster will slow down from supersonic speeds, resulting in audible sonic booms in the area around the landing zone. Generally, the only impact to those in the surrounding area of a sonic boom is the brief thunder-like noise with variables like weather and distance from the return site determining the magnitude experienced by observers.
Starship will fly a similar trajectory as the previous flight test with splashdown targeted in the Indian Ocean. This flight path does not require a deorbit burn for reentry, maximizing public safety while still providing the opportunity to meet our primary objective of a controlled reentry and soft water landing of Starship.
One of the key upgrades on Starship ahead of flight was a complete rework of its heatshield, with SpaceX technicians spending more than 12,000 hours replacing the entire thermal protection system with newer-generation tiles, a backup ablative layer, and additional protections between the flap structures. This massive effort, along with updates to the ship’s operations and software for reentry and landing burn, will look to improve upon the previous flight and bring Starship to a soft splashdown at the target area in the Indian Ocean.
Whether this launch will occur as proposed remains uncertain. The FAA’s immediate response to the Coast Guard’s notice to mariners was to unequivocally negative.
We are not issuing launch authorization for a launch to occur in the next two weeks — it’s not happening,” an FAA spokesman said Wednesday afternoon. “Late November is still our target date.”
SpaceX’s actions here, combined with rumored political maneuvers behind the scenes, suggest that great pressure is being applied to the FAA as well as other agencies like the EPA to get out of the way. This new SpaceX announcement certainly acts to increase that pressure. Whether it is sufficient however is unknown, because the Biden administration has routinely allowed these agencies total freedom to impose whatever regulatory burdens they deem necessary, with no limits at all. Why it should change that policy now, just before the election, and help its political opponent, Elon Musk, get this launch off, seems unlikely.
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.
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Artist rendering of Superheavy being captured by
the tower chopsticks at landing. Click for video.
The hint last week that SpaceX might attempt its fifth test orbital launch of Starship/Superheavy launch by mid-October was confirmed yesterday by the company. It announced on its Starship/Superheavy webpage that it is now targeting October 13, 2024 for 5th Starship/Superheavy launch, “pending regulatory approval.”
SpaceX’s announcement noted that the flight’s primary goals will be an attempted chopstick landing of Superheavy at the launch tower in Boca Chica and a test of Starship’s ability to return and land using its newly redesigned heat shield.
The returning booster will slow down from supersonic speeds, resulting in audible sonic booms in the area around the landing zone. Generally, the only impact to those in the surrounding area of a sonic boom is the brief thunder-like noise with variables like weather and distance from the return site determining the magnitude experienced by observers.
Starship will fly a similar trajectory as the previous flight test with splashdown targeted in the Indian Ocean. This flight path does not require a deorbit burn for reentry, maximizing public safety while still providing the opportunity to meet our primary objective of a controlled reentry and soft water landing of Starship.
One of the key upgrades on Starship ahead of flight was a complete rework of its heatshield, with SpaceX technicians spending more than 12,000 hours replacing the entire thermal protection system with newer-generation tiles, a backup ablative layer, and additional protections between the flap structures. This massive effort, along with updates to the ship’s operations and software for reentry and landing burn, will look to improve upon the previous flight and bring Starship to a soft splashdown at the target area in the Indian Ocean.
Whether this launch will occur as proposed remains uncertain. The FAA’s immediate response to the Coast Guard’s notice to mariners was to unequivocally negative.
We are not issuing launch authorization for a launch to occur in the next two weeks — it’s not happening,” an FAA spokesman said Wednesday afternoon. “Late November is still our target date.”
SpaceX’s actions here, combined with rumored political maneuvers behind the scenes, suggest that great pressure is being applied to the FAA as well as other agencies like the EPA to get out of the way. This new SpaceX announcement certainly acts to increase that pressure. Whether it is sufficient however is unknown, because the Biden administration has routinely allowed these agencies total freedom to impose whatever regulatory burdens they deem necessary, with no limits at all. Why it should change that policy now, just before the election, and help its political opponent, Elon Musk, get this launch off, seems unlikely.
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.
Will the Bureaucrats blink? Stay tuned…
I guess we don’t have to speculate too hard on nature of the quid pro quo for the $10 million the Biden family got from China, do we?
This is very interesting. There is lots of noise and rumor indicating that things are indeed happening behind the scenes and that NASA and SpaceX are both confident and this isn’t just SpaceX trying to put public pressure on the FAA. On the other hand, the last thing the FAA said was, as mentioned here “not happening.” Although from what I’ve seen, that comment from the FAA is a bit old and pre-dates SpaceX putting out their post targeting the 13th.
SpaceX is sending out notices about press access for camera setup, filing for NOTAMs, etc., which sure seems a bit beyond “we’re just applying pressure on the FAA.” They wouldn’t want to risk annoying their press contacts I would assume.
As always, I bet there is a big disconnect between the actual workers at the FAA who do the work and interact with SpaceX and seem to actually be pretty reasonable, and the higher level DC folks who seem to be lashing out in desperation of late.
Elon Musk, for all his intelligence and wealth, is surprisingly dense at times.
All he needs to do is revise the primary objective of Starship/Superheavy to that of the first launch platform to take an illegal alien to outer space.
I find it interesting that the FAA said “OUR target date”. Why should they have their own target date.
I also wonder if this is not Musk playing a bit of politics also:
1 He wants to launch.
2 He is ready to launch.
3 America, look how your federal government gets in the way.
4 VOTE FOR CHANGE
Has anyone told Joe Biden that the FAA is hassling the only aerospace company led by an African-American?! Hmmm?
I think it is important that neither Kamala, the knucklehead, Biden nor his spokespeople have spoken critically of Elon. And consider that the establishment media has not asked Kamala about Elon. Kind of like they have been told not to. Point being, the democrat party does not want to take on Elon directly. Which admittedly is odd being that the white democrat base is very aware of Elon and would like very much to see the government smack him down.
Someone should ask Kamala about this since she is the person actually in charge of the government now.
But then again she could be the one slowing down these launches just to save the planet and keep the environmentalists on her side.
You really think Biden or Harris are really in charge of anything?
FWIW Slightly redacted comment from another blog a few weeks ago regarding the FAA and holding up Musk:
“It’s Biden. A friend of mine worked at the main FAA office in DC for a couple of years. It’s highly political, very corrupt, and the people working there are all pretty much evil.”
Robert notes:
“One of the key upgrades on Starship ahead of flight was a complete rework of its heatshield, with SpaceX technicians spending more than 12,000 hours replacing the entire thermal protection system with newer-generation tiles, a backup ablative layer, and additional protections between the flap structures. This massive effort, along with updates to the ship’s operations and software for reentry and landing burn, will look to improve upon the previous flight and bring Starship to a soft splashdown at the target area in the Indian Ocean.”
How long, exactly, did it take SpaceX to accomplish a “complete rework” of Starship’s heatshield and thermal protection system in time for this upcoming launch? Contrast this to the still unresolved questions abut Orion’s heat shield and NASA’s — an agency “unburdened” by the concepts of time or cost — attempts to find a solution to the problem. Not much more to be said, actually.
Per sippin_bourbon’s comment, perhaps one person in ten thousand might think about voting against the Biden Administration in order to vouchsafe a successful American space program, but — yes — that is truly what this election is all about. Likewise, whether or not we continue the Founders’ experiment with the America Republic and the rights of man. As it is, all of the truly important things* will be decided on the basis of people’s emotional responses to the candidates, pocketbook issues, and the effectiveness of the mountain of propaganda that gets spewed. This is what happens when civics and citizenship are ignored for decades and people seek only convenience, immediate gratification, and following the herd. Cf, the Fourth Turning and the looming crisis before us.
*As outlined by Tucker Carlson in this address: https://tuckercarlson.com/tucker-wisconsin-speech-