We will soon see another incredible flight of SpaceX’s Starship vehicle in South Texas! The Starship SN11 prototype is designed to perform a high-altitude flight test that will provide engineers insight towards the spacecraft’s development. SN11 will soar 10-kilometers into the sky powered by a trio of methane-fueled Raptor engines, perform an aerodynamic descent controlled by four aerodynamic flaps, and a flip-maneuver upon landing. Like its predecessor, SN11 will attempt to ace the landing, without exploding. The previous test vehicle exploded soon after landing.
SpaceX targets to launch Starship SN11 above Boca Chica Beach on Friday, according to a notice published by Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño, Jr., he ordered a 12-hour Boca Chica Beach road closure tomorrow. “I have ordered the closure of Boca Chica Beach and Hwy 4 for the purpose of protecting Public Health and Safety during SpaceX engine testing and 10 km flight on March 26, 2021, in the time period between 7:00 a.m. C.S.T. to 7:30 p.m. C.S.T., of the same day. If members of the public would like to view the flight, please do so from a safe distance and away from Boca Chica Beach.” Treviño stated, notice letter pictured below. However, this date is subject to change, SpaceX still has to perform an additional static-fire test of Starship SN11’s Raptors. If the test goes well in the morning, SpaceX could attempt to perform the high-altitude flight after noon. SpaceX could also require more time to prepare the vehicle, this article will be updated with new information as the launch approaches. UPDATE: Friday launch attempt cancelled.
#SpaceX #Texas
— Evelyn Janeidy Arevalo (@JaneidyEve) March 25, 2021
SpaceX plans to launch Starship SN11 as soon as tomorrow March 26! 🚀
Good luck @SpaceX teams! 🍀 pic.twitter.com/2bVr4kilNn
SpaceX founder Elon Musk aims to have a space-ready Starship launch vehicle in less than three years. His company runs around-the-clock operations to speed up the spacecraft’s development. Starship is being designed with the ultimate goal to enable humans to build a city on Mars and set a permanent lunar base. “SpaceX will be landing Starships on Mars well before 2030. The really hard threshold is making Mars Base Alpha self-sustaining,” Musk said this week. The first Starship passenger will be Yusaku Maezawa, a Japanese entrepreneur, who booked a voyage around the moon by 2023. The company is working on an ambitious schedule to make it a reality. You can watch SpaceX operations Live in the video below, courtesy of LabPadre via YouTube.
All Images Source: SpaceX
About the Author
Evelyn Arevalo
Evelyn J. Arevalo joined Tesmanian in 2019 to cover news as a Space Journalist and SpaceX Starbase Texas Correspondent. Evelyn is specialized in rocketry and space exploration. The main topics she covers are SpaceX and NASA.
