This is a key test that the Starship, SpaceX’s super-rocket, has just completed while awaiting its orbital flight.
This is a new milestone that SpaceX has just reached in the development of its super-rocket. Tuesday, January 24, the American company announced to have completed successfully completed a critical phase in preparation for the very first Starship orbital flight. This is the “wet dress rehearsal” – called in English “wet dress rehearsal”.
Loading tanks, just like a real flight
This formulation may escape those who follow the space sector from afar. It actually designates the moment when the launcher’s tanks are filled with liquid ergol – the “fuel” of the rocket. This is why it is called a “wet” test. In the case of the Starship, the tanks are filled with a mixture of liquid oxygen and liquid methane.
This is a step that is not entirely trivial and the American space agency knows something about it. When it was necessary to carry out the same “wet dresse rehearsal” for the Space Launch System, NASA’s super-rocket which will be used to bring astronauts back to the Moon, some difficulties were observed. These are tons of flammable liquid circulating in the pipes.
The test conducted by SpaceX was accompanied of a symbolic countdown, for ” check the full sequence “before a real takeoff, but also to check” spacecraft and orbital platform performance in view of future missions. It was at “Starbase”, nickname given to SpaceX’s spaceport located in Texas, that the filling took place.
It was the first time that the first stage of the rocket — called SuperHeavy — was loaded with propellant. And, for once, this segment was indeed super heavy. SpaceX mentions in its tweet the loading of 10 million pounds, or more than 4,500 tons of fuel. Note also the support under the rocket to support the fully loaded rocket.
Finally, the only part that did not take place was the “static firing”, which designates the firing, without takeoff, of the main propulsion, to check that everything is ready for a real firing. In general, this step occurs a few hours or the day before a real mission. In the case of the Starship, it will probably be during its orbital flight test, which is long overdue.
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