SpaceX continues accelerating preparations for the ninth integrated test flight of its colossal Starship launch system, executing a series of key propulsion trials this week at its Starbase facility in South Texas. The company is methodically stepping through its preflight checklist, including multiple static fire tests aimed at validating engine performance under flight-representative conditions.
Credit: SpaceX
Earlier this week, SpaceX conducted a static fire of the Starship upper stage — also referred to as "Ship" — igniting a single Raptor engine to simulate an in-space maneuver. The brief but high-stakes trial took place on-site at Starbase and was captured in a photo and short video shared via the company’s official X (formerly Twitter) account on Thursday, May 1. SpaceX stated that the test successfully demonstrated a controlled in-space burn, a critical milestone in ensuring the vehicle’s performance during orbital operations.
The second test involved a 30-second static fire of all six engines, but it didn’t appear to go entirely as planned. Footage from NSF’s livestream indicates that one of the Raptor Vacuum engines may have shut down abruptly, prompting the remaining engines to cut off shortly after.
This anomaly has led to speculation that SpaceX may have been intentionally attempting to recreate issues encountered during Flights 7 and 8—possibly by pushing an engine to its limits—to better understand and resolve them. If so, this could mark a step forward in diagnosing and addressing those prior failures. However, without any official statement from SpaceX, such interpretations remain speculative. Notably, unlike the single-engine test, SpaceX has yet to release its own footage of this six-engine firing.
Following the test, Ship 35 was transported back to Mega Bay 2 for post-test processing. As for the timing of Flight 9, the recent issues are believed to have delayed any previously targeted launch window, which had tentatively centered around May 9–10. That timeframe now appears to be off the table.
At present, the next steps for Ship 35 are uncertain. Under typical procedures, the ship would make a brief return to the Production Site before heading to the launch pad. However, if further testing is deemed necessary, another rollout to Masseys for an additional static fire could be in the cards.
Towering at 403.5 feet (123 meters) when fully stacked, the Starship-Super Heavy system is the most massive and powerful launch vehicle ever developed. It consists of two reusable stages: the Super Heavy booster, equipped with 33 methane-fueled Raptor engines, and the Starship upper stage, which carries six Raptors. Both stages are designed for rapid turnaround and multiple flights, central to SpaceX’s long-term goals of interplanetary transport and commercial orbital operations.
To date, the integrated Starship system has flown eight test missions, with incremental progress in each. The most recent two flights — Flight 7 and Flight 8, conducted on January 16 and March 6 respectively — demonstrated successful booster launches and recoveries using SpaceX’s innovative launch tower “chopstick” arms. However, both missions ended prematurely when the Ship upper stages failed less than 10 minutes after liftoff, disintegrating over the Atlantic and scattering debris along their transoceanic paths, including over the Turks and Caicos Islands and parts of The Bahamas.
Flight 9 is poised to represent another critical step forward. SpaceX has confirmed it will reuse the Super Heavy booster from Flight 7 for the upcoming mission, showcasing the company’s commitment to rapid reusability. A static fire of that booster was completed last month, involving 29 of the 33 Raptor engines that previously flew on Flight 7. This underscores not only SpaceX’s engineering confidence but also the operational model it hopes to scale for future high-cadence Starship launches.
While an official date for Flight 9 has yet to be announced, the successful completion of both upper and lower stage static fires signals that launch preparations are entering their final stages. The aerospace community now awaits confirmation of a launch window, as SpaceX edges closer to realizing its vision of a fully reusable orbital transport system capable of supporting lunar, Martian, and deep space missions.
Add comment
Comments