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 Pratik Patil

A huge Super Heavy booster is rolled onto the launch pad ahead of the launch of Starship Flight 8 by SpaceX

SpaceX is moving steadily toward its next big launch, as key components of the Starship megarocket have arrived at the launch pad in preparation for liftoff later this week. On February 25, the company shared images on X, showcasing the massive Super Heavy booster being carefully positioned onto the orbital launch mount at its Starbase facility in South Texas. This crucial step keeps the ambitious test flight on schedule, with the eighth Starship mission set to take off on Friday, February 28.

Starship, designed by SpaceX to be the most powerful rocket ever constructed, is a key element in the company’s long-term vision of enabling human exploration and settlement on the Moon, Mars, and beyond. The fully reusable rocket stands an impressive 403.5 feet (123 meters) tall and consists of two major components: the Super Heavy booster, which provides the initial thrust at launch, and the Starship upper-stage spacecraft, often simply called Ship.

So far, Starship has embarked on seven test missions, the latest taking place on January 16. That flight yielded mixed results; while SpaceX successfully executed a daring maneuver to catch the Super Heavy booster using the “chopstick” arms attached to Starbase’s launch tower, the upper stage encountered a significant failure. A critical anomaly during flight resulted in a propellant leak that led to multiple engine shutdowns. Ultimately, the autonomous flight termination system was triggered, causing Ship to detonate over the Atlantic Ocean.

Following an extensive investigation, SpaceX determined that unexpectedly high stress within Ship’s propulsion system was the root cause of the failure. The company has since addressed the issue and is moving forward with Flight 8, which will aim to achieve similar objectives as its predecessor. This includes another attempt at catching Super Heavy with the chopsticks and deploying four mock Starlink satellites during the mission. While Flight 7 carried ten dummy Starlink satellites, it never had the opportunity to release them due to the mid-flight failure.

If everything proceeds according to plan, Ship will complete its journey by splashing down in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Western Australia, approximately 66 minutes after liftoff.

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Categories: Science
Tags: Elon MusknewsSolar SystemspaceSpaceXStarshipStarship Flight 8Super Heavy boosterUniverse
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