SpaceX successfully conducts a fixed-fire test of the spacecraft (unexploded)

SpaceX engineers conducted the first ignition test of C Steady shooting from Booster 7, a prototype of the first stage of so heavy. The test, in which only one of the Raptor’s 33 engines has been fired, brings the company closer to its first orbital test of the revolutionary Starship system.

The test took place August 8 at SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas, according to Tweet company. Ground crews completed one static firing test of the Raptor engine while the booster was from 69 meters I stood perpendicular to the launch tower.”MikazelaThe Booster 7 was equipped with 33 Raptor engines, but SpaceX, in a rare moment of caution, chose to launch just one.

orFortunately, two of the main spin tests earlier in the day did not result in an explosion. SpaceX prevented a repeat of the July 11 incident in which a gaseous mixture of methane and oxygen was accidentally ignited, causingThere was a huge explosion right below the booster.

a test head spinin which propellant is pumped through the engines without being ignited, usually performed in preparation for static fire tests (static ignition fire tests include from the engine without actually launching the missile). being performed To test the pipeline, but the gases produced during a test from July 11 It was ignited by an unknown source. The Explosion This damaged the prototype booster and sent it back to the Starbase factory for repair.

Booster 7 returned to the launch pad August 6 after reinstalling 20 of the rocket’s 33 Raptor engines, according to my quests. On August 8, “Obviously a Indicative of a second, more cautious attempt at engine testing, the SpaceX probalso Only one of those 20 preys that run high-pressure gas through the engine to spin their turbine pumps without igniting their pre-burners (used to generate gas to power the turbine pumps) or The main combustion chamber,” according to Teslarati.

Later the same thing Today, SpaceX lit it Single Raptor engine. company I did before Static firing test of a prototype Starship Booster, but this marks the first static test fire of a Booster 7, even if it’s in Limited range. The test seemed to run smoothly, with the engine on and off after a four-second burn. And if that wasn’t enoughSpaceX too made Static shooting tests of two raptors on a higher stage, ieStarship 24 prototype.

It’s a small step for Starship, but potentially a giant leap for SpaceX as it works to develop its revolutionary Heavy Launch System. The booster is the first stage of the fully reusable two-stage rocket, with the Starship spacecraft as the upper stage. SpaceX envisions Starship as a platform for transporting passengers and cargo into deep space, including Future missions to Mars. It is also the current first choice NASA To serve as a human landing system for the Artemis 3 missionalsounscheduled Not later than 2025.

Both stages of the Starship are powered by Raptor engines, which are more powerful than the Merlin engines used in rockets. Falcon 9 company. The upper stage of the Starship has already completed a series of suborbital tests, included a landSuccessful vertical lift on May 5, 2021. A fully stacked system has yet to be launched, but SpaceX hopes to conduct an orbital test sometime this year. chief executive officer , Elon Musk, Expect this test to fail, and say That a successful orbital test could occur sometime in the next 12 months.

The scene in operation of a single Raptor motor is impressive, so it’s hard to imagine what it would look like when all 33 Raptor motors are set to run. The successful test conducted on August 8 indicates a full stable test launch of Booster 7.