SpaceX to Reuse Super Heavy Booster After Successful Test
SpaceX is making strides in its quest for fully reusable rockets. After eight Starship launches and three successful catches of the Super Heavy booster by Mechazilla, the company is now preparing a previously flown booster for another launch.
In a recent announcement, SpaceX revealed that it is gearing up to launch a Super Heavy Booster that already completed a flight. This particular booster, which previously participated in the seventh test flight in January, has 29 of its 33 Raptor engines deemed "flight-proven," according to the company's post on X.
Prior to the upcoming Flight 9, SpaceX conducted a static fire test of the booster. This marks the first time a Super Heavy Booster that has already been to the edge of space has undergone such testing. Reporter Stephen Clark from Ars Technica emphasized the importance of this milestone.
The booster, known as Booster 14, is slated to fly again during Starship's next test flight. If successful, this will be the first instance of a pre-flown booster being reused for another launch. A launch date for Starship's next flight is yet to be announced by SpaceX.
While SpaceX has achieved significant progress with the 232-foot-tall (71 meters) Super Heavy booster, including successfully catching it during three out of four attempts, the upper stage has faced challenges in the last two test flights.
During flight 7 in January, the upper stage experienced an engine malfunction, leading to an early shutdown and subsequent breakup, resulting in debris falling over Turks and Caicos. Similarly, flight 8 saw another major failure, with the upper stage spinning uncontrollably and disintegrating shortly after launch. In both instances, the upper stage was intended to perform a soft splashdown off the coast of Western Australia approximately one hour after liftoff.
Starship, designed as a fully reusable launch vehicle, necessitates both the Super Heavy booster and the upper stage (Ship) to be caught mid-air by the 400-foot-tall Mechazilla tower. Currently, the booster's progress appears promising.
Source: Gizmodo