Starship If-9: After failures, SpaceX is getting big at the reuse of a booster to convince

Recent explosions of starship (or shorts)in January and March, oblige the space company SpaceX to obtain convincing results, especially within the framework of Artemis III and IV missions of NASA For which the upper vessel, the same one that poses a problem, must be posed on the moon and take it back with a crew on board.

The reasons for the explosions of Elon Musk’s vessel after its separation from the Super Heavy booster point to an oscillation problem, called harmonic response by engineers, or even pogo effect. In this context, the SpaceX teams carried out a soil test, therefore static, of the S35 Ship.

SpaceX therefore published a video of the tests with the ignition of the six engines. Officially, no date has been announced for IFT-9, the ninth take-off of the megafusée 123 m high, but it is rumored that two shooting windows are already envisaged, on May 20 and May 21.

It remains to be hoped that the serious technical problems identified have been resolved, because if the Super Heavy booster has been masterfully recovered three times by the Mechazilla Tower, the uncontrolled destruction in full flight of the Ship ask many questions, especially ecological.

For the first time, a super heavy booster will be reused!

A great first should take place with the reuse of Booster B14 caught in flight last January by Mechazilla, the giant tower and second star of the Starbase. When we see in what state these boosters come back, it will be interesting to attend takeoff. Let us also recall that in the context of Artemis missions, and even more for the hypothetical missions to Mars, the rate of fire from the starship will have to be extreme and will demand a massive reuse of these boosters. This test with an already used first floor is therefore crucial.

Towards a new calendar for Artemis III?

Without being completely critical for SpaceX, a third failure would be very worrying and may push NASA to review the calendar of Artemis III once again, in which not many people no longer believe, moreover … It actually seems unlikely that a vessel that explodes a few minutes after its take-off is able to place a crew on the moon, in an unfortunate area, which is more likely, and manages to bring everyone living into the house

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