Leonard David's INSIDE OUTER SPACE

Image credit: SpaceX

At T-minus 00:00:00 “Excitement Guaranteed”

The first flight test of a fully integrated, fully reusable SpaceX Starship and Super Heavy rocket is close at hand.

This voyage is on tap to help “inform and improve” the probability of success in the future of this transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, and to Mars and beyond.

“The first integrated flight test of Starship is trending towards the third week of April, pending regulatory approval,” explains SpaceX. A “soft landing” of the Starship is slated for the Pacific north of Hawai’i.

Numerous tests of the Super Heavy rocket have been carried out, including a full-duration 31 Raptor engine test – the largest number of simultaneous rocket engine ignitions in history.

Projected flight profile.
Image credit: SpaceX

Starbase facility

At the SpaceX Starbase facility on Boca Chica Beach in Texas, SpaceX has also built the world’s tallest rocket launch and unique “catch tower.”

At nearly 500 feet tall (146 meters), the launch and catch tower is designed to support vehicle integration, launch, and catch of the Super Heavy rocket booster.

Image credit: SpaceX

For the first flight test, the team will not attempt a vertical landing of Starship or a catch of the Super Heavy booster, adds SpaceX.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has not made a license determination for the SpaceX Starship Super Heavy operation.

For more information, go to: https://www.spacex.com/vehicles/starship/

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