Header Tank News Today

April 26, 2021 Starship SN15 is set to re-enter pre-launch testing Monday, tasked with setting the scene this week for a flight that could pave the way toward an orbital flight in the coming months.  The groundwork for the push to orbit is taking place both at the Orbital Launch Site and elsewhere in Texas as a new dual-bay Raptor test stand nears completion. Starship SN15: Since arriving at the Suborbital Launch Site, SN15 has undergone several “risk reduction” tests ahead of firing up he...

Starship SN15 prepares to rollout as Raptor testing ups a gear April 4, 2021 Just days after Starship SN11 conducted a fog-cloaked test flight that ended in an explosive finale, SN15 is already in final preparations for a rollout down Highway 4 at SpaceX Starbase (Boca Chica). SN15 will sport numerous modifications that SpaceX hopes will result in improved performance ahead of shooting for orbit along with smoother touchdowns for its prototype rocket. One of the mostly unspecified modifications...

Starship SN11 prepares to fly as SpaceX pushes for Orbital flight this summer March 15, 2021 Starship SN11 will re-attempt a Static Fire test Thursday – following a scrub on Monday – ahead of a potential flight as early as the weekend or the start of next week. Forever subject to change due to numerous considerations – ranging from weather, hardware parameters, and paperwork approval – SN11 will mark the final test of this iteration of Starship before the program moves into the next pha...

A far cry from the 150-meter hops of SN5 and SN6, observers were somewhat spoilt by the achievements of Starship SN8, which completed numerous firsts during its 12.5 km high launch. SN9 mirrored most of the tasks before suffering an engine issue during the pre-landing flip. Those tasks will continue to be refined as SN10 rose into the South Texas skyline, initially under the power of her three Raptor engines. During ascent, one engine shut down, followed by a second, before the final remaining ...

However, after the test, Elon noted that an engine swap would be required. One of the engines is suspect, so we’re swapping it out This required a second Static Fire test to be conducted ahead of setting a new launch target. With the engine swap conducted in record time, Thursday saw SN10 fire up again – this time successfully (albeit without any official confirmation). However, with roadblocks canceled and TFRs pointing to a launch opportunities on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday next week ...

February 7, 2021 The three Raptor engines tasked with Starship’s third high altitude test flight have been installed into the aft of SN10. Pending acceptable results from an upcoming Static Fire test, SN10 will be tasked with repeating the flight of her deceased sisters, SN8 and SN9, before a landing attempt that will utilize a slightly different approach to the flip ahead of landing – allowing for redundancy in the event one Raptor suffers an issue, as was the case with the loss of the pre...

The first test involved filling the vehicle with nitrogen, usually in a two-step fashion. Initially, the vehicle will be filled with gaseous nitrogen – called the ambient test, ahead of being loaded with super-cold liquid nitrogen (LN2) for the cryo test. This test sequence is expected early in the week, with preparations for testing already ongoing on Monday morning. By Monday evening, the ambient test had completed. However, the cryotesting element was still outstanding by the time the test...