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SpaceX\u2019s massive Starship rocket reached orbit for the first time on Monday morning, achieving a milestone for the program after the mission briefly looked at risk because an engine failed during ascent.<\/p>\n
Starship took off at 7:49 a.m. local time out of SpaceX\u2019s Starbase launch facility in South Texas, embarking on what could be a nearly 10-hour-long test flight. The rocket was carrying 26 of the company\u2019s upgraded Starlink satellites, which the vehicle successfully deployed in orbit to join the existing internet-from-space network.<\/p>\n
\u201cEach satellite that we\u2019ve deployed has, from what we can tell, has looked good,\u201d said SpaceX spokesperson Dan Huot. \u201cVery smooth.\u201d<\/p>\n
SpaceX shares were up about 1% at 9:55 a.m. New York time.<\/p>\n
As Starship climbed to space, one of its six Raptor engines cut out early, leading SpaceX engineers to temporarily call off the attempt to send the rocket to orbit. However, after looking through the data, the team pressed on with the attempt, burning one of Starship\u2019s Raptor engines and putting the vehicle in orbit for the first time.<\/p>\n
Monday\u2019s test flight \u2014 Starship\u2019s 14th \u2014 is a key moment for SpaceX, as all of the rocket\u2019s other space launches until now have purposefully fallen short of orbit to maximize safety. Now, US regulators have approved SpaceX to take Starship to the next step, trusting that the company can safely transport the rocket to orbital speeds and bring the vehicle back to Earth in a controlled manner.<\/p>\n
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If successful, the flight could open the door to many more orbital flights. With this launch, SpaceX will be adding its first upgraded Starlink satellites, known as V3s, to the company\u2019s growing 11,000-plus spacecraft network already in orbit. Starship deployed V3 Starlink satellites on a previous launch, but they ultimately burned up in Earth\u2019s atmosphere as planned.<\/p>\n
SpaceX Chief Financial Officer Bret Johnsen has called this mission a \u201crevenue-generating flight\u201d for the company, since the V3 satellites are production quality and will be integrated in the overall network. SpaceX Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk has also made big claims about the V3 spacecraft increasing the overall capacity of Starlink.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe do expect a very rapid increase in revenue from Starlink communications from the V3 satellite,\u201d Musk said during SpaceX\u2019s first-ever earnings call in August. He added that the satellite is \u201cmore than 10 times the capability of the V2 satellite, and we\u2019ll be launching 10 times as many.\u201d<\/p>\n
Starship is instrumental to all of SpaceX\u2019s grandiose ambitions. Not only is the rocket solely responsible for launching V3 Starlink satellites, it is also tasked with lofting as many as one million future satellites to serve as AI data centers in Earth orbit \u2014 a project that fueled SpaceX\u2019s blockbuster IPO this summer.<\/p>\n
Ultimately, Starship is meant to unlock Musk\u2019s goal of sending humans to other worlds, such as the moon and Mars. However, there is still a lengthy amount of development work that SpaceX must undertake in order to reach distant locations in space, such as demonstrating the ability to refuel Starship while in orbit.<\/p>\n
Additionally, SpaceX wants Starship to be fully reusable, a feat that no other rocket has achieved. To achieve this, SpaceX aims to \u201ccatch\u201d the two major portions of Starship \u2014 the Super Heavy booster and the Starship spacecraft \u2014 back on Earth at the launchpad after each flight.<\/p>\n
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SpaceX has caught the Super Heavy booster using the Starship launch tower three times. Musk said at the All-In Summit that if this upcoming flight goes well, SpaceX will attempt to catch the Starship spacecraft for the first time on the 15th test launch.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then either end of this year, but more likely early next, we will refly the ship and refly the booster,\u201d Musk said.<\/p>\n
The Super Heavy booster, which sends the Starship spacecraft to orbit, splashed down in a controlled manner off the coast of Texas about seven minutes after takeoff. Once the full 10-hour mission is complete, the Starship spacecraft should return to Earth from orbit and splash down in the Pacific Ocean to the west of Chile.<\/p>\n
SpaceX will again be testing Starship\u2019s heat shield to see if the vehicle can survive scorching hot temperatures as it plunges through Earth\u2019s atmosphere on the way home. On Starship\u2019s previous flight, Starship successfully survived its return and even remained intact when it splashed down in the Indian Ocean. SpaceX was able to retrieve that Starship and study how the heat shield handled the descent.<\/p>\n
Some experts have cautioned that Starship\u2019s heat shield design is still not robust enough in order for the rocket to be fully and rapidly reusable. However, Musk said during SpaceX\u2019s August earnings call that he considers the \u201cheat shield problem solved.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a9 2026 Bloomberg<\/p>\n
#SpaceX #launches #starship #flight #orbit #key #test<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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