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It was probably the most spectacular aerospace experiment since Falcon Heavy’s debut in 2018. the 12.5 km altitude launch by the first full-size spacecraft prototype. It may seem like a flop from the explosion that followed the landing, but Elon Musk and several company executives have confirmed it was a “spectacular success.” Just watch the video to understand what SpaceX has proven to be capable of.
Following the postponement in recent days due to problems with the Raptor engines, Musk’s aerospace company has performed previously unthinkable maneuvers on a Starship-sized rocket, which performed flawlessly for most of the mission. There SN8 spaceship has for failed during soft landing operations that SpaceX had already successfully tested with SN5 and SN6. As Musk himself said his twitter the landing problem was caused by a malfunction in a secondary rocket tank.
Starship SN8, spectacular success for SpaceX
For reasons not yet specified, the tank or perhaps the associated pipe they were unable to maintain the pressure required to propel a Raptor thruster with enough fuel to complete the task. Lack of fuel and excess oxygen turned the Raptor engine into a giant oxygen torch, melting the copper walls of the combustion chamber and making a soft landing impossible. Had the secondary tank maintained the correct pressure, the SN8 probably would have perfected a softer landing and would have reached the ground intact (or in better condition).
Even the leaders of SpaceX, and not just Elon Musk, said they were excited about the test result, despite the seemingly unsuccessful ending. However, in the context of SpaceX’s iterative development approach maintained from its inception, having succeeded in Keeping the spacecraft in the air on a mission lasting several minutes performing advanced maneuvers and failing only in the last moments before the end can be considered a “spectacular success”..
Starship SN8, the different phases of the mission
All three Raptor engines remained active for 100 seconds after lift-off (the longest firing for the SpaceX rocket, previously used only in a single configuration), after which one of the three rockets shut down and the remaining two stabilized. . to keep control of the spaceship. Then after about 2 minutes, a second Raptor engine shut down, leaving only the last rocket active, which produced enough thrust to maintain the spacecraft’s altitude and perform a particular “horizontal glide” maneuver (particularly strange in a medium as SN8).
Just under five minutes before takeoff, the last Raptor also shut down, initiating the descent on the ground with the long-awaited maneuver called “skydiver” or “belly-flop”. The rocket literally fell on its stomach for about two minutes using four fins to maintain stability. Finally, the Starship SN8, while “falling” parallel to the ground, first ignited one rocket again, then the second, to perform an even more bizarre maneuver than the previous one, turning thanks to the thrusters thrust of about 90 aggressively.
It is unclear how long the various SN8 maneuvers took, however as of this point it is clear that something went wrong, with one of the two Raptor engines starting to emit a green flame (probably caused by the copper from combustion) and the rocket that has hit the ground too fast. A final with a bang, for a mission that can still be defined as an incredible success.
Starship SN8 destroyed, but never mind
Speaking of numbers, the Starship SN8 hit the ground 10 to 20 seconds earlier than expected, at a maximum speed of 30 m / s according to the company’s plans (108 km / h). It must be said that the purpose of the test was not to return the spacecraft safely to Earth, but to demonstrate the capabilities of the vehicle with more than one engine in use, stability in free fall, handling of tanks, re-ignition. rocket and the final “flip” maneuver. Everything went according to plan, with almost unexpected success from the top management of the American aerospace company.
The entire mission lasted around 400 seconds, well beyond SpaceX’s expectations, from lift-off to explosion, and most of the time it seems that everything went according to the best predictions. After the mission, SpaceX has not only reaped a media success, but also and above all one lots of invaluable data to analyzein view of further evidence. With the successful debut of the SN8, much of the test and launch facilities remained intact, requiring only minor repairs. Starship SN9 is now complete as well, waiting to be used a few miles away as soon as SpaceX has analyzed all the new data in its possession to carry out a new mission.
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