United States approves Starship takeoff; the largest rocket in the world

SpaceX It is preparing to undertake a second attempt next week and relaunch the largest and most powerful rocket in the world, the Starship, awaiting authorization from the US air regulator.

Starship is preparing to take off on November 17, subject to relevant regulatory approval from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), SpaceX announces on its social networks.

The American space agency NASA is closely following the development of the Starship and has this ship for its Artemis missions back to the Moon. In fact, a modified version of the machine should serve as a lander to deposit its astronauts on the lunar surface.

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On April 20, Starship took off for the first time in its complete configuration from the base of Boca Chica, in the state of Texas (south). But on this occasion several engines did not work and the SpaceX teams deliberately blew up the rocket after a few minutes of flight. The FAA then opened a safety investigation, which concluded at the end of October.

Second SpaceX rocket awaiting launch in Texas.

Starship preparing to launch as early as November 17, pending final regulatory approval → https://t.co/bJFjLCiTbK pic.twitter.com/qRKv9ugWsR

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) November 11, 2023

This Wednesday the FAA granted SpaceX, the company led by Elon Musk, a license to launch the second test flight of its next-generation Starship and heavy-lift rocket from the state of Texas.

"The FAA determined that SpaceX met all safety, environmental, policy and financial responsibility requirements," the agency, which oversees commercial launch sites, said in a statement.

Improve first takeoff

After the April experience, SpaceX announced 63 fixes for its second attempt which include "redesigns of the vehicle's hardware to prevent leaks and fires" and also the "redesign of the launch pad to increase its robustness."

In addition, a water "deluge" system was installed and tested with showers that are discharged when the engines are started in order to attenuate acoustic waves and limit counterproductive vibrations.

Starship is 120 meters high and is made up of two sections: the Super Heavy propulsion stage and its 33 engines, and above it is the spacecraft itself, which by extension gives its name to the entire rocket.

Its true innovation is that must be completely reusableand the two stages are designed to return and land on their launch pad, which reduces costs.

During the first test, these two stages failed to separate in flight.

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This forced the separation system to also be modified, the company's owner, magnate Elon Musk, had reported during a conference at the beginning of October.

Musk said that testing this new system would be "the riskiest part" of the second test.

With information from AFP and Reuters.

ORP