Unprecedented test flight of SpaceX’s Starship will aim for orbit

• Happening today: The most powerful rocket ever made, SpaceX’s Starship, is set to make a massive leap forward in its testing campaign. It will seek to reach orbit for the first time and deploy operational Starlink internet satellites.

• Launch time: The rocket is slated to launch from SpaceX’s facilities in Starbase, Texas, during a 75-minute launch window that will open at 8:15 a.m. ET (7:15 a.m. CT). The flight is expected to last 10 hours, completing six orbits around Earth, while Starship deploys 26 satellites.

• What to expect: SpaceX will not attempt to land the Super Heavy rocket booster or the upper Starship spacecraft back on dry land. Both will aim for controlled splashdowns in the ocean.

• Coming up: SpaceX is facing intense pressure to get Starship ready for a crucial NASA test flight next year that could pave the way for the next moon landing.

SpaceX isn't "catching" Super Heavy back on dry land today. Here's why

Sergio Flores/AFP/Getty Images

Reusing rockets is SpaceX’s modus operandi.

It’s how the company got where it is today: SpaceX pioneered a method of landing, refurbishing and reflying its Falcon 9 rockets when the rest of the launch industry was simply throwing their vehicles away after every flight.

But during today’s test flight, SpaceX is not expected to attempt to recover any piece of the Starship launch system back on dry land.

That’s despite the fact that SpaceX has successfully returned Super Heavy rocket boosters to pinpoint upright landings back at the launch tower on three prior test flights.

But those landings were achieved with earlier versions of Super Heavy. The most recent iteration, which debut earlier this year, has encountered stubborn issues during the final moments before touchdown.

On the last test flight in July, Super Heavy was supposed to relight 13 engines as it practiced an upright landing over the Gulf. It was only able to light eight.

The problem? Super Heavy’s three center engines “showed signs of ice clogging.” Remember: The rocket’s propellants are supercold, kept at temperatures below −260°F.

Today, SpaceX will test out a fix for this issue: The Super Heavy “has hardware modifications to improve filtering to the engines and software changes to enhance relight reliability,” the company said on its website .

Here's what to expect during today's test flight

Steve Nesius/Reuters

The last 13 flights of SpaceX’s Starship rocket — all launched out of a company-run town in South Texas — have looked quite similar.

Starship is graduating from hour-long suborbital test flights and (possibly) making the leap to reaching Earth orbit.

The gravity (no pun intended) of this test is immense. It marks the beginning of Starship’s transition out of a test flight campaign and into formal operations — a leap that’s expected to have a paradigm-shifting effect not just on SpaceX, but on the entire space industry.

During today’s test, called Flight 14, SpaceX will not attempt to land the Super Heavy rocket booster or upper Starship spacecraft back on dry land, though the ship will attempt to deploy functional satellites while in orbit for the first time ever.

Liftoff is expected during a 75-minute launch window that opens at 8:15 a.m. ET.

Here’s a play-by-play of what to expect today:

T-50 minutes : Kicking things off in identical fashion to prior, suborbital test flights, the SpaceX launch director will conduct a “go/no go” poll of launch directors to ensure the rocket is ready to begin fueling.

T-0 : Liftoff . Though the Super Heavy booster actually ignites its engines three seconds prior, Starship’s gargantuan size means it takes a few moments to get moving off the launchpad.

T+58 seconds : Starship and Super Heavy hit “Max-Q.” That’s the moment of maximum stress on the vehicle as it ascends.

T+2 minutes 20 seconds : Super Heavy will power down its engines. In quick succession, the bottom booster will separate from the upper ship and begin its return to Earth. The ship will light its own six engines and continue on a suborbital trajectory.

T+6 minutes 35 seconds : The Super Heavy booster will attempt to re-light 13 engines to make a controlled upright landing over the Gulf.

T+8 minutes 11 seconds: The upper ship shuts down its engines after gaining substantial speed as it continues on a suborbital path.

T+25 minutes 28 seconds : If — and only if — all of Starship’s systems are working properly, the ship will conduct a nearly 20-second engine burn. This will finally put the spacecraft into orbit.

T+34 minutes 18 seconds : The ship will begin deploying its 26 Starlink satellites. The process will take about half an hour. Starship will then enter a coasting phase for roughly eight hours.

T +8 hours 52 minutes 18 seconds : The ship will again fire its engines for a deorbit burn, sending it on a path to plunge back into Earth’s thick inner atmosphere.

T+9 hours 28 minutes 52 seconds : Starship will begin the reentry interface, meaning it will begin experiencing the extreme stresses and heat of diving back into the atmosphere.

T+9 hours 50 minutes 11 seconds : Starship will again fire its engines for landing burn. In rapid succession it will turn itself upright and begin to orient itself for a gentle touchdown. The ship will aim to touchdown off the coast of Chile.

• 今日要闻：SpaceX公司迄今为止最强大的火箭——星舰（Starship）——即将迎来测试阶段的重大飞跃。它将首次尝试进入轨道，并部署可运行的星链（Starlink）互联网卫星。

• 发射时间：火箭计划于美国东部时间上午 8:15（中部时间上午 7:15）开启的 75 分钟发射窗口内，从位于德克萨斯州星际基地的 SpaceX 发射场发射升空。此次飞行预计持续 10 小时，绕地球飞行六圈，期间星舰将部署 26 颗卫星。

• 预期情况：SpaceX不会尝试将超重型火箭助推器或星舰上层飞船回收至陆地。两者都将以可控溅落的方式投放至海洋中。

• 即将到来：SpaceX 面临着巨大的压力，需要让星舰做好准备，参加明年 NASA 的关键性试飞，这可能会为下一次登月铺平道路。

SpaceX今天无法将超重型火箭“回收”到陆地上。原因如下。

Sergio Flores/AFP/Getty Images

火箭重复使用是SpaceX的运作模式。

这就是SpaceX公司发展到今天这一步的原因：当其他发射行业公司每次飞行后都简单地将火箭丢弃时，SpaceX率先采用了一种着陆、翻新和重新飞行猎鹰9号火箭的方法。

但在今天的试飞中，SpaceX 预计不会尝试将星舰发射系统的任何部件回收到陆地上。

尽管 SpaceX 此前已成功将超重型火箭助推器在三次试飞中精准地垂直降落在发射塔上。

但这些着陆都是用早期版本的超重型火箭实现的。最新版本于今年早些时候首次亮相，但在着陆前的最后时刻却遇到了棘手的问题。

在7月份的最后一次试飞中，超重型飞机原计划在海湾上空进行垂直着陆练习时重新点火13台发动机，但最终只点火了8台。

问题出在哪里？超重型火箭的三台中央发动机“出现了结冰迹象”。请记住：火箭的推进剂温度极低，保持在零下260华氏度以下。

今天，SpaceX 将测试解决此问题的方案：该公司在其网站上表示，超重型火箭“进行了硬件修改，以改善发动机的过滤，并进行了软件更改，以提高重新点火的可靠性”。

以下是今天试飞期间需要注意的事项

史蒂夫·内修斯/路透社

SpaceX 星舰火箭的最近 13 次飞行——全部从该公司位于德克萨斯州南部的一个小镇发射——看起来都非常相似。

星舰正在从持续一小时的亚轨道测试飞行中毕业，并（可能）迈向进入地球轨道。

这次测试意义重大（绝非双关）。它标志着星舰从试飞阶段过渡到正式运营阶段——这一飞跃预计不仅对SpaceX，而且对整个航天工业都将产生颠覆性的影响。

在今天名为“飞行 14”的测试中，SpaceX 不会尝试将超重型火箭助推器或星舰上层飞船降落在陆地上，但该飞船将首次尝试在轨道上部署功能性卫星。

预计发射时间为美国东部时间上午 8:15 开始的 75 分钟发射窗口。

以下是今天比赛的详细赛程：

倒计时 50 分钟：与之前的亚轨道测试飞行一样，SpaceX 发射主管将对发射主管进行“发射/不发射”投票，以确保火箭已准备好开始加注燃料。

T-0：起飞。虽然超重型助推器实际上在起飞前三秒就点火了，但星舰的庞大体积意味着它需要一些时间才能离开发射台。

T+58 秒：星舰和超重型火箭达到“最大动压点”。这是飞行器上升过程中承受最大压力的时刻。

发射后2分20秒：超重型火箭将关闭其引擎。随后，底部助推器将与上部火箭分离，并开始返回地球。火箭将启动自身的六台引擎，继续沿亚轨道飞行。

T+6 分 35 秒：超重型助推器将尝试重新点燃 13 台发动机，以便在海湾上空进行可控的垂直着陆。

T+8 分 11 秒：上层飞船在沿亚轨道飞行并获得相当快的速度后，关闭了引擎。

T+25分28秒：只有当星舰的所有系统都正常工作时，飞船才会进行一次持续近20秒的发动机点火。这将最终把飞船送入轨道。

T+34分18秒：飞船将开始部署其26颗星链卫星。此过程大约需要半小时。之后，星舰将进入滑行阶段，持续约八小时。

T +8 小时 52 分 18 秒：飞船将再次点火进行脱轨燃烧，使其走上坠入地球浓厚内大气层的道路。

T+9 小时 28 分 52 秒：星舰将开始重返大气层，这意味着它将开始承受重返大气层时的巨大压力和高温。

着陆后9小时50分11秒：星舰将再次点火进行着陆推进。随后，它将迅速翻转机身，调整姿态，准备平稳着陆。星舰的目标是在智利海岸附近着陆。