A leak in the upper stage of the Starship was to blame for the premature termination of the giant rocket’s first orbital flight in mid-November last year. According to the space company Space-X, this caused liquid oxygen to ignite on the upper stage, resulting in fires that interrupted communication between the rocket’s flight computers. This caused the six engines of the upper stage to shut down and the autonomous flight safety system activated the abort of the flight.
The spaceship was already in space at an altitude of 150 kilometers and was traveling at around 24,000 kilometers per hour towards Hawaii, where it was supposed to splash down in the Pacific. Previously there was also a glitch with the super heavy lower stage of the Starship given, which had initially separated from the upper stage with successful ignition. However, when returning to the launch site in Boca Chica, Texas, there were significant problems with the engines, so that the booster self-destructed about 90 kilometers over the Gulf of Mexico after more than three and a half minutes of flight. In Space-X jargon, this is also called “rapid unscheduled dismantling.” The “most likely” cause of this was a clogged filter when supplying liquid oxygen to the engines, reports Space-X.
The FAA is demanding 17 improvements
According to the company, engineers have changed the hardware in recent weeks to improve the safety of the spacecraft. Space-X had already made numerous changes last year after the Starship was blown up during the first launch attempt in April 2023 because fuel had also leaked at that time. At the time, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) demanded 63 improvements, which Space-X fulfilled. This time, the FAA ordered a total of 17 improvements, including changes to the hardware for the Super Heavy Booster as well as additional fire protection measures and upgrades for the upper stage. This is a prerequisite for the new launch permit that Space-X is now waiting for. At the company, the possible explosion of the test rockets is part of the development work so that the engineers can collect as much data and experience as possible.
SpaceX boss Elon Musk announced on his short message platform X in mid-February that the third Starship-Start could take place within about three weeks. Kevin Coleman from the FAA then said that this schedule could be about as good as the platform Ars Technica reported. He also said that Space-X is planning a total of nine Starship launches this year, which is “very ambitious.”