SpaceX has begun preparing for its next flight of the Starship megarocket, just a week after the last successful launch. The company recently conducted a long-duration “static fire” test with Super Heavy, Starship’s first-stage booster, at its Starbase site in South Texas. All 33 engines of Super Heavy lit up during the trial, marking an important step towards the next launch.
The test was part of the preparations for Starship Flight 9, which is scheduled to be the 10th fully stacked Starship mission. The previous flight lifted off from Starbase on May 27 and featured a used Super Heavy booster, which performed several experiments before being brought back down safely. However, during its return, the booster broke apart just over six minutes after launch.
The upper stage of Starship, also known as “Ship,” reached space but began tumbling about 30 minutes into flight. The vehicle lost contact with SpaceX shortly after, and it is likely that the pieces now rest on the Indian Ocean seafloor.
As a result of this incident, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has ordered an investigation into what happened on Flight 9. Until the inquiry is concluded to the agency’s satisfaction, Flight 10 cannot lift off. With SpaceX preparing for its next launch, fans are eagerly awaiting more information about the company’s plans and the outcome of the ongoing investigation.
Source: https://www.space.com/space-exploration/launches-spacecraft/spacex-fires-up-super-heavy-booster-ahead-of-starships-10th-test-flight-video