SpaceX receives FAA blessing for another Starship test

SpaceX is set to have another go at launching its monster Starship rocket today after the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) gave the venture the green light.

The FAA has issued a license modification authorizing the test flight, which is scheduled to launch on March 3 from 2330 UTC. One of the license modifications references orbital flight, suggesting that SpaceX is getting ready to move on from sub-orbital launches.

The latest launch comes a week after Flight 7, which began so promisingly (the Super Heavy Booster was caught by arms on the launch tower) and ended so badly (the second stage exploded). Debris showered down over the Turks and Caicos Islands.

SpaceX reckoned the premature end to the previous test was down to "harmonic response" and has tweaked the hardware and thrust targets accordingly. It also undertook an extended static fire of Flight 8's Starship to ensure things wouldn't come to pieces in the same way again.

This is still a test, and SpaceX has said: "Developmental testing by definition is unpredictable."

Although a safety review has been completed, the FAA noted that the investigation into the Starship Flight 7 on January 16 "remains open."

Flight 8 will fly on the same suborbital trajectory as its predecessor, which means splashing down in the ocean for Starship and hopefully another catch of the Super Heavy Booster by arms on the launch tower.

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SpaceX boss Elon Musk explained why the company continues to send Starship into the sea at the end of the mission: "We need to perfect ship reentry at extreme temperatures before attempting to catch the ship with the tower arms, like the booster."

SpaceX is trying several modifications to protect Starship during reentry, including active cooling for the tiles. The spacecraft's reentry profile has also been designed to deliberately stress the structural limits of the upper stage's rear flaps while at maximum entry dynamic pressure.

The company also plans to relight a single Raptor engine while the vehicle is in space – essential before moving to orbital operations – and deploy four Starlink simulators. Similar in size to next-generation Starlink satellites, the simulators will be on the same suborbital trajectory as Starship.

Should all go well with Flight 8, an orbital flight will likely soon follow, and possibly - before long - a launch tower catch instead of an ocean splashdown. ®