New satellite images show SpaceX’s Starship prototype placed on the launch pad ahead of its high-flying test flight on Tuesday (February 2), which caused the prototype to crash after complex maneuvers were successfully completed.
A SkySat satellite operated by San Francisco-based company Planet captured stars’ high-definition satellite images of Starship SN9 at the company in South Texas, near the Gulf Coast, hours before its launch. The company’s SkySats fleet contains 21 individual machines in different orbital locations, which can visit an image area about five to ten times a day, Planet said on its website.
“SN9’s sister ship is slightly visible above and to the right, and the landing strip is the concrete square closer to the beach,” Planet wrote in a photo caption. “This high-resolution SkySat image reveals details of the test facility, even the color of individual cars and trucks parked nearby.”
Related: SpaceX has two Starship prototypes on the way at the same time
The Starship flight – which is being investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration after the FAA said the event violated a driver ‘s license – took place near the small community of Boca Chica Village. The 50-meter (50-meter) prototype went through much of its flight plan, including shutting down the three Raptor engines and reaching the target altitude of about 10 kilometers.
SN9 also made an intricate horizontal reversal that it would have to make during an optional entry into the Earth’s atmosphere after an operational spaceflight. But it could not hold the landing and exploded into a fireball, just like the fate of predecessor SN8 on 9 December.
“We have obtained very good data, and the primary objective – to demonstrate control of the vehicle in the subsonic re-access – looked very good, and we will get a lot out of it,” said John Insprucker, head of SpaceX integration . said during the launch of SpaceX during the webcast, while the admission of the landing series will require more work.
Related: Here’s what SpaceX’s first spacecraft to transport astronauts looks like (satellite photos)
And just for fun 🙂 pic.twitter.com/aQQOQ1gVfS3 February 2021
SN9 is the latest in a series of Starship prototypes in support of SpaceX’s ultimate goal of sending settlers and supplies to Mars. Another flight version, SN10, is about to test in advance.
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