SpaceX has been facing challenges with the upper stage of its Starship rocket, following consecutive failures. However, notable progress has been made in the development of the rocket’s substantial booster, Super Heavy.
The evidence of advancement with the Super Heavy booster became apparent at 9:40 am local time on Thursday at SpaceX’s Starbase launch site in South Texas. During this event, SpaceX successfully ignited a Super Heavy booster, which had previously reached the edge of space, in a test lasting approximately eight seconds. This marked the first instance of SpaceX test-firing a “flight-proven” Super Heavy booster, specifically Booster 14, which sets the stage for its upcoming flight. SpaceX has confirmed the re-launch of Booster 14, following its initial launch and return in January, in the subsequent Starship launch. This static fire test signifies that Booster 14 is closer to being ready for flight than any other booster currently in SpaceX’s nearby factory.
According to SpaceX, 29 of Booster 14’s 33 methane-fueled Raptor engines are deemed flight-proven. In a statement on X, SpaceX highlighted that the first reuse of Super Heavy would contribute to achieving the goal of “zero-touch reflight.” Successfully reflighting the Super Heavy booster would represent a crucial step for the Starship program as engineers continue to address issues with the rocket’s upper stage, referred to simply as the ship.
The Super Heavy booster is equipped with engines capable of generating nearly 17 million pounds of thrust, which is double the power of NASA’s Saturn V rocket that facilitated lunar missions. This positions Super Heavy as potentially the most intricate booster ever constructed, also making it the largest. To visualize its size, one can imagine the fuselage of a Boeing 747 jumbo jet standing vertically.
SpaceX has conducted eight full-scale test flights involving the Starship, with a combined Super Heavy booster and the upper stage, collectively rising to a height of 404 feet (123.1 meters). Thus far, the booster component has demonstrated a successful performance, achieving seven consecutive successful launches since a failure during Starship’s initial flight.
Recently, SpaceX successfully recovered three out of four Super Heavy boosters, drawing from its extensive experience in recovering and reusing Falcon 9 boosters. The total count of Falcon rocket landings has now reached 426.
The first reuse of a Falcon 9 booster by SpaceX took place in March 2017, during an operational mission with a communications satellite, valued at several hundred million dollars. Leading up to this milestone Falcon 9 reflight, SpaceX invested nearly a year in refurbishing and retesting the rocket post its initial mission. The journey involved more ground mileage than actual flight, as the rocket returned to Florida on a SpaceX drone ship, later transported by truck to the headquarters in Hawthorne, California, for detailed inspections and refurbishment.
Engineers eventually moved the refurbished booster to SpaceX’s test site in McGregor, Texas, for further test-firings, and thereafter returned the rocket to Florida for final preparations before launch. In contrast, the Super Heavy booster will not undergo such a journey, primarily due to its challenging transport owing to its larger dimensions compared to the Falcon 9. Nonetheless, enhancements informed by lessons from the Falcon 9 program have facilitated the readiness of Super Heavy for reflight in under three months.