![]() Kirasich said there are still several milestones before Starship will be ready for an orbital launch. “SpaceX is still pursuing an aggressive Starship development test plan, but this failure resulted in corrective actions to increase systems engineering and risk management rigor,” he said. ![]() A member of the panel, Paul Hill, mentioned it at the panel’s Oct. That incident also attracted the attention of NASA’s Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel. “They’ve since elevated the level of systems engineering put into each one of these tests, as well as brought in some new leadership into the team down there,” he said, resulting in “additional rigor” in subsequent tests. SpaceX, in the early days, goes for speed above systems engineering rigor,” he said, calling it a “pause and learn” event for SpaceX. “That was an operational and planning oversight. Kirasich said that test put “a relatively large amount of fuel” into a cloud of oxygen, triggering the detonation. SpaceX has repaired the booster and implemented corrective actions, according to the agency. It was during a spin prime test July 11 that SpaceX suffered what NASA euphemistically calls a “high-energy event” when propellants ignited underneath the booster, damaging it. SpaceX has yet to fire all 33 Raptor engines simultaneously, having done tests of up to seven engines at a time as well as a “spin prime” test where the engines’ turbopumps are turned on and propellant flowed through the engines without igniting them. That schedule is dependent on several upcoming milestones, including a static-fire test of all 33 Raptor engines in the Super Heavy booster designated Booster 7. Starship would go into orbit but almost immediately reenter, splashing down near Hawaii after completing less than one orbit. The profile for that test flight would be the same as the company previously detailed in regulatory filings, with the Super Heavy booster and Starship lifting off from the Boca Chica, Texas, test site. “Right now, the schedule would lead to an early December test flight,” he said. 31, Mark Kirasich, deputy associate administrator for Artemis Campaign Development at NASA, said the agency’s understanding of progress on testing of the Starship vehicle, including its Super Heavy booster, supported an orbital launch attempt late this year. Speaking to the NASA Advisory Council’s Human Exploration and Operations Committee Oc. WASHINGTON - NASA expects SpaceX to be ready to attempt a first orbital flight of its Starship vehicle, an essential element in the agency’s Artemis lunar exploration plans, as soon as early December, pending tests and regulatory approvals.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |