SpaceX is working on the next Starship flight test, which could take place in May. A first check of the motorization of the upper floor has just been completed.
The dust raised during the Starship’s third test has just settled, and SpaceX has already launched preparations for the fourth test, expected in May at the earliest. On March 25, the American company announced that it had completed an important step in preparation for the next flight, just 11 days after its last attempt.
This phase consisted of completing a static firing of the upper stage of the Starship. Here, the structure was not intended to fly away: it was to ignite all of its engines, of which there were six. The sequence was the subject of a video of 15 seconds, shared on X (formerly Twitter) on the SpaceX account.
Upcoming series of tests to prepare the Starship
Notwithstanding the delivery of the stages to the test and launch sites, static firing constitutes the first major step to take before takeoff. Then generally comes an equivalent test for the main stage, called Super Heavy, to also check its engine (33 engines).
In the coming weeks, the Super Heavy will therefore be tested like this. There will then be the assembly of the two stages, but also the loading of the “fuel”, a mixture of liquid methane and oxygen. Added to this are all the hardware and software modifications made essential following the lessons learned from flight no. 3.
The test in mid-March made it possible to observe the proper functioning of all of the Starship’s engines during the ascent phase, according to the report from SpaceX and what it was possible to observe live. SpaceX also carried out shutdowns and restarts in mid-flight, when the two stages separated.
If several milestones were successfully achieved, others were not attempted (such as the engine restart in space) or failed (the controlled landing of the two stages). The analysis of flight data should make it possible to identify launcher failures and areas for improvement in anticipation of the next attempt.
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