After SpaceX unexpectedly used a road closure on Monday to deliver its first purpose-built rocket fuel tank, plans for the next Starship test campaign and launch began to solidify.
Most importantly, the initial schedule for Starship Series Number 15 (SN15)’s test campaign appears to be clear. As of Wednesday, April 7, the closure of the road by SpaceX indicates that the first of a new group of upgraded Starships will be transported from the construction site to the launch site from Thursday, April 11 as early as 11: 00-13: 30 (UTC-5) word (UTC-5). 8th. Once SN15 is installed on ‘Suborbital Road A’, SpaceX means no time to waste and planned a closure from 07:00 to 12:00 on Friday.
As usual, the weekend is again free of any testing or activity that requires road closures, but SpaceX has already barricaded Monday and Tuesday (April 12/13) until 20:00 until noon to continue testing its latest Starship prototype .
Although road closure notices no longer provide real details, some basic details can still be deduced. The closure on April 7, for example, warns that SpaceX only intends to close the highway occasionally, but not Boca Chica beach, implying that the window poses no threat to residents or beachgoers. Historically, this means that something will be transported – probably in this case Starship SN15.
On Friday, SpaceX planned a complete closure of the highway and the five-hour beach, indicating that some sort of test is likely in the books. The same goes for Monday and Tuesday, but with longer closures of eight hours.
Assuming Starship SN15’s road vehicle and launch facility runs smoothly, SpaceX will use the shorter Friday window to complete a basic ambient pressure test – to fill the rocket with nitrogen gas at the area to test its intricate plumbing and propellant tanks for leaks . By continuing the IFF string (if and only if), SpaceX will then spend the weekend preparing Starship SN15 for a cryogen-resistant test and stress test of the pressure structure – to simulate the stretch of three birds of prey after hitting the rocket charged with extremely cold liquid nitrogen (LN2).
SpaceX will then most likely spend another day or two exploring Starship SN15 and removing the hydraulic ram used to remove the simulated thrust from the launcher on which the ship was installed. Once SN15 and its container are cleaned, SpaceX can switch to static fire tests. Since SN15, according to CEO Elon Musk, will debut Raptor engines with an unknown amount of upgrades, it is reasonable to assume that SpaceX will take things relatively slowly and possibly perform more than one static fire test, even if the first attempt a total success. .
If this is not the case, and SpaceX continues to push hard as with SN10 and SN11, it is not out of the question that Starship SN15 will be ready for its first launch attempt on Friday 16 April or Monday 19 April. Stay tuned for updates as SpaceX will hopefully roll the rocket to the Boca Chica, Texas launch site later today.