Washington. The Mega Rocket Starship of Elon Musk’s company SpaceX stopped just a second before take-off for its 13th test mission on Thursday. The system automatically aborted the launch due to some engines not starting properly just before launch. After this the rocket was kept safe on the launch pad itself and the process of extracting fuel was started.
What went wrong just before launch?
SpaceX said that now it will be found out where the technical fault occurred, only after that the date of the next launch will be decided. The 407 feet (124 m) tall Starship is the world’s largest and most powerful rocket, equipped with 33 main engines. This was its 13th test mission.
Why did the mission suddenly stop after the engine started?
SpaceX’s live webcast showed that the ignition process of the engines began three seconds before the scheduled flight. This scene was clearly visible in the drone camera flying above the launch pad. However, the engines that had started working suddenly stopped and the rocket remained tied to the launch pad. Soon after, the launch team began the process of removing fuel from the rocket.
What did Elon Musk say about the next launch attempt?
Posting on social media platform X, Elon Musk said that it is expected that the next launch attempt will be made in a few days.
What was to be sent in the mission?
Everything was looking in favor of SpaceX before the launch. The weather was also completely favourable, but the mission had to be aborted after partial engine ignition. During this flight, 20 of SpaceX’s new and most advanced Starlink satellites were to be launched into space. In this flight of about an hour, these satellites had to establish contact with the Starlink satellites already in orbit as well as take pictures of the heat shield of the starship. Neither the first stage booster nor the spacecraft were planned to be recovered in this mission. Both were ultimately to fall into the sea.
Why is Starship very important for NASA?
NASA is counting on Starship to land its astronauts on the Moon in the coming years. The US space agency has entrusted SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’ company Blue Origin with the task of developing and flying such lunar landers, with the help of which humans will be returned to the Moon after more than half a century.
What will be the impact on the preparations for Artemis mission?
Both companies will have to have their respective lunar landers, Starships and Blue Moon flight ready by next year, so that astronauts of the recently announced Artemis-III mission can practice docking their capsules with these landers in Earth’s orbit. Subsequently, the Artemis-IV mission, which is not planned before 2028, will land two astronauts in the southern polar region of the Moon with the help of one of these landers.
