Adapted by:
Matías S. Zavia
WriterAerospace and energy industries journalist at Xataka.
Karen Alfaro
WriterCommunications professional with a decade of experience as a copywriter, proofreader, and editor. As a travel and science journalist, I've collaborated with several print and digital outlets around the world. I'm passionate about culture, music, food, history, and innovative technologies.
Following two explosions earlier this year, SpaceX has received permission from the U.S. government to conduct the ninth Starship test flight, which the company said will take place Tuesday night, May 27. SpaceX outlined the changes to the spacecraft and the causes of the earlier failures.
Third time lucky? Technicians at Starbase have been working to implement improvements to the prototype scheduled for the ninth test of the Starship program. This attempt follows the failure of two consecutive flights of a new version, Starship Block 2.
SpaceX has completed numerous ground tests. With Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approval secured and the investigation into the previous flight advanced, the world’s largest rocket is set to fly again. If all goes as planned, the launch window will open Tuesday, May 27, at 6:30 p.m. local time in Texas.
Problem solved. During the earlier flights in January and March, Starship ended in explosions. The upper-stage engines shut down prematurely, causing the spacecraft to lose control and disintegrate in the upper atmosphere. Debris fell over the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands. This setback came as SpaceX was seeking permission for 25 Starship test flights per year.
The FAA-led investigation into the January flight found that a liquid oxygen leak and a fire in the engine compartment caused the in-flight failure. The incident stemmed from more intense vibrations than engineers had anticipated.
SpaceX made adjustments for the March flight, but the spacecraft failed again. Rumors began to circulate about a possible design flaw in Starship version 2, which is slightly taller and uses a redesigned fuel delivery system. However, newly released investigation findings show that the second failure was unrelated to the first and that the vibration issue had already been resolved before Flight 8.
What went wrong during the flight? The FAA investigation into the March flight determined that the most likely cause of failure was a hardware malfunction in one of the three central Raptor 2 engines. The issue triggered accidental ignition of the propellant.
The remaining central engines and a vacuum Raptor engine shut down immediately after the explosion, leading to total loss of control. SpaceX believes the flight termination system activated after the spacecraft lost communication, ensuring its disintegration.
Improvements. Since SpaceX had already addressed the vibration issue before Flight 8, engineers turned their focus to reinforcing the joints of the upper-stage engines and upgrading the propellant drainage and nitrogen purge systems.
These temporary fixes will no longer be necessary once the Raptor 3 engine is introduced. Raptor 3 has a more minimalist design that integrates multiple components and adds reliability improvements to prevent similar failures. The FAA has approved the changes to Raptor 2, stating that SpaceX “has satisfactorily addressed the causes of the mishap, and therefore, the Starship vehicle can return to flight.”
Fine-tuning. A few days ago, SpaceX completed a long-duration static fire test of the six engines on Starship 35, the prototype for the ninth flight. The test posed a major challenge, requiring multiple attempts.
During the first attempt in early May, one engine emitted a flash, and debris flew off. After successfully igniting, Starship 35 returned to the production facility for final preparations, presumably to load Starlink satellite mockups and adjust the heat shield.
What Flight 9 will be like. Next week’s flight will follow a similar profile to previous attempts but will include new milestones. Booster 14, the Super Heavy rocket powering the launch, returns to flight after its January mission. During that flight, it reached the edge of space, separated from Starship, and flew back to the launch pad, where mechanical arms caught it midair.
SpaceX is reusing 29 of the 33 propellant engines for this mission after thoroughly inspecting them. Engineers replaced single-use components, such as the ablative heat shield. However, SpaceX doesn’t plan to recover Booster 14 this time. Instead, the rocket will fly over the sea to test a riskier flight profile, executing a sharper descent and deliberately shutting down one engine during splashdown.
Starship 35. The spacecraft is expected to reach an altitude of more than 100 miles and, for the first time, demonstrate cargo deployment by launching eight Starlink simulators using a dispenser system inspired by Pez candy. About an hour after launch, the spacecraft will reenter the Indian Ocean for a controlled splashdown.
In addition to addressing previous failures, the mission will test the improved heat shield on the Starship Block 2, a critical step toward making the spacecraft reusable. Earlier attempts never reached reentry, so the shield has yet to be tested in flight.
SpaceX has removed many thermal tiles to expose vulnerable areas. Flight 9 will test new metal tiles, including one with active cooling, as well as capture hardware for future landings. Engineers will also evaluate new flaps during reentry.
The planes will be farther away this time. Despite showing confidence in SpaceX, the FAA imposed new conditions, including an expanded no-fly zone. The aircraft danger area now extends 1,600 nautical miles eastward from Starbase, through the Florida Strait to the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos. Previous Starship debris landed in this area.
This expansion will affect 175 commercial flights on more than 70 routes, with delays of about 40 minutes expected. However, if SpaceX completes a successful series of launches, officials are likely to reduce the exclusion zones again.
The coming weeks are crucial for Starship. A successful Flight 9 would help the program recover from recent failures and ease pressure on NASA, which is counting on a lunar Starship to transport astronauts from orbit to the Moon’s surface in 2027.
Image | SpaceX
View 0 comments